Blood Bonds
by SummerRaeBenson
Summary: A single person can change the course of multiple lives. My take on Sons of Anarchy if Clay and Gemma had a daughter haunted by the bonds that were chosen for her. The past will come back to bite you, especially when the loose ends are piling on top of one another. Not a daughter rebellion story. Gemma/Clay. Somewhat Jax/Tara.
1. Chapter 1

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"Is your nose ever going to get out of that book?" Gemma asked, glancing at her eighteen year old daughter sitting upside down on the couch in her office. Delta Harley Morrow, newly graduated, had spent the past two weeks with her head buried in law books, and it was starting to worry Gemma a little more than usual.

"Did you know it's illegal to go whale fishing in Nebraska?" Delta asked, completely ignoring her mother's question. She looked up with a grin. "Whoever said you needed to be smart to make laws was a liar."

Gemma chuckled and pulled the book out of her hands, resting it on her desk. "That's it. Time to send you to law school."

Delta kicked her legs up, flipping backwards off the couch and landing on her feet. She rested her hands on her hips with a slight smirk. "Well, with recent events, a daughter with a law degree could come in handy." She laughed when Gemma jerked forward and tried to grab her. "You have to admit. It was a good one."

"I'll admit to that." Gemma conceded before handing her a file. "Put this away for me."

Delta took the file and walked over to the cabinet, glancing through it as she went. She opened up the drawer and stuck it inside. "It's not a bad idea though."

Gemma looked up with wide eyes. "What? Law school?"

"Just school in general." Delta sighed before sitting across from her mother. "Charming hasn't been exactly my town, no matter how much respect this club demands." She turned her head to look out the open office door, seeing the club members walk around with tools and oil smeared hands. "One stupid decision, and I'm still paying for it."

Gemma reached out and took her daughter's hand into hers. "Hey, that wasn't your choice. We got caught in some bad business and Hale took advantage of that." She followed her daughter's gaze out the open door. "Did you hear he's back on the force here in Charming?"

"Yep." Delta nearly spat. "The guys don't know yet, do they?"

"They've been so busy preparing for ATF to arrive. I don't think anyone's been listening to the wire on Hale." Gemma sighed. She squeezed her daughter's hand. "Have you seen Abel yet?"

Delta shook her head. "I'm scared."

"Me too, baby." Gemma whispered before Jax stepped into the office. He plopped down on the couch, dirty sneakers and leather kutte landing on the cushions. "Why are you here? I thought I told you to go see Abel."

Jax shook his head. "Wendy's the one who wanted him." He pulled a cigarette out of his pocket. "He's going to die anyway, Ma. The doctors gave him chances lower than before the surgery. He ain't gonna make it."

"So, you're just going to give up on him like he's nothing to you." Delta scoffed.

Jax stood up. "I don't know why I came in here to talk to you two about this." He shoved his cigarette back into his pocket. "I didn't want him in the first place. The only reason he's here is because Wendy went and named him." He argued before walking out of the office, unaware of his little sister charging up behind him. He yelled out when he felt her jump onto his back and wrap her arm around his neck. He grabbed it and tugged hard enough to pull her around. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You have a kid fighting for his life, and you're the one giving up on him. What the hell is wrong with you?" Delta nearly screamed back at him.

"Hey, I'm not ready to be a father." Jax stated.

"He wasn't ready to be born. Nice taste in a junkie wife, jackass." Delta snapped at him. "He's still your son."

Jax gritted his teeth. "Just because you lost your kid doesn't mean you have the right to lecture me about mine." He regretted the words the second they came out.

Delta grabbed the gun in her waistband and pointed it directly at him. The rest of the boys in the yard were completely silent, watching as the two siblings fought like it was World War III. "Why don't you say that again?" She threatened, using her free hand to egg him on as she teared up. "Why don't you remind me of my dead baby again? Like I don't think about that shit enough."

"Delta, I'm-" Jax started, but was cut off when Delta fought him.

"Don't you dare say you're fucking sorry." Delta breathed. She faltered slightly when Clay stepped up next to her, gently putting his hand on her waist and his other one on her arm holding the gun.

Clay stroked her hair. "I know it hurts, baby." His jaw tensed when he could feel her trembling. "Give me the gun, sweetheart." He wrapped his hand around the gun and slowly lowered her arm. "I need you to let it go." He saw her fight within herself before her fingers let the gun drop into his hand. He handed her the keys to his bike. "Take a ride and cool off."

Delta stared daggers at Jax as her father dropped his keys into her hands. "Keep a better eye on your gun, big Bro."

Jax felt around his waist to find his gun missing, now resting in Clay's hand. He watched as Delta walked to Clay's bike and took off out of the lot. He looked at Clay and accepted his gun, ignoring the low growl from his stepfather. "She never wanted that baby."

"No, but she accepted it. Much like your ex-wife, she named that baby." Clay gritted out. "You will make this right."

"I know." Jax relented, feeling the guilt mounting on his shoulders. He shielded himself when he felt a smack over the back of his head. "Mom!"

Gemma came around to face him. "You are really bent on being an asshole this week, aren't you?" She pulled his keys out of his pocket and shoved them into his hand before pointing at his bike. "Go follow her."

Jay's eyes widened. "She just pointed a gun at me."

"She's still your sister, and I don't want her out there alone." Gemma stated before glancing between him and Clay. "Hale is back on the force here in Charming."

Clay's voice nearly boomed across the blacktop. "HALE!"

Jax ran a hand down his face. "Shit." He wrapped his fingers around his keys. "I gotta catch up to her." He ran over to his bike and got on before zooming out of the shop to find his sister.

Clay wrapped his arm around Gemma's waist from the front, pulling her closer to whisper in her ear. "I want him taken care of this time. He got away with far too much, and he never paid the price."

"I agree with you, but ATF is going to put us all behind bars if a cop shows up dead." Gemma breathed before patting his shoulder, covered by the black material of his t-shirt. "Tell the boys. I want someone with Delta at all times. She's a lot smarter, but Hale has a whole new team."

"Do you think he'll go after her again?" Clay asked, looking out at the road his two kids rode out on.

Gemma turned slightly to look at the same thing. "He got away with it once. I don't see why he wouldn't try for it again."

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	2. Chapter 2

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Delta groaned when she saw cop lights flashing behind her. She felt the knot in her stomach when she could see Hale sitting in the driver's seat, alone in the car. Turning on her blinker, she pulled to the side of the road, waiting for him to get out of the car. She took off her helmet when she heard his footsteps, setting it down between her legs and keep a firm grip on the straps, ready to whip her arm around if needed be.

She spoke when the sun reflected off his new police badge from Charming. "Hale."

"Morrow." Hale nodded in response. He looked down at the bike beneath her. "I see you've changed rides since we last saw each other."

"Well, this does last longer than you." Delta smirked at him. She held her hand over the key. "Is there a reason you pulled me over?"

Hale shrugged. "I saw you, thought I'd say 'hi'." He took off his sunglasses. "It's only been a few years, but you grew up. You're looking more like your mother everyday."

Delta shuddered at his words. "You're a sick man." She went to turn the key to the bike, but he covered her hand with his. "If you don't remove your hand, you are going to lose it."

"Relax." Hale said, raising his hands to his sides. "I'm not here for anything." He saw the look at Delta's face, seeing through his bullshit. "Fine. A few years ago, what we had was good."

Delta's eyebrows raised. "It was blackmail."

Hale smirked. "I wasn't the only one who had a happy ending." He brushed some of her hair behind her ear. "Admit it. You loved meeting up at my house or at the office to commit to our little deal."

"You pulled me out of school for questioning and then fucked me in your car." Delta stated, slapping his hand away. "I was supposed to be taking a calculus test when you took me to one of the holding cells."

"Good times, huh?" Hale grinned, wagging his eyebrows at her.

Delta rolled her eyes. "Yes, that's why I threw up in the toilet after it was over." She turned when she heard a motorcycle engine heading their way. Although she was still pissed at him, she was relieved to see Jax pulling up on his bike. "If you don't want to be castrated, you better go."

Jax left his bike running as stormed over to Hale before punching him. "Get the fuck out of here, Hale. Leave her alone!" He shouted, grabbing Hale's collar and shoving him towards the cop car.

"Until we meet again." Hale said, wiping the blood from his face and getting in his car.

Jax turned to Delta when he pulled away, following the highway out of sight. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not." Delta admitted after a moment. She jutted her chin in the direction Hale left. "He wants to pick up where he ran off." She turned her gaze to her older brother. "Thanks. I'm still mad at you."

"I'll make it up to you." Jax nodded his head, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Ma and Clay want someone with you at all times until this situation is handled." He smirked when Delta's facial expression didn't change. "But, you saw that one coming." He leaned over and kissed her head. "Let's head back to the clubhouse. Hopefully, we can get a game plan for all of this shit." He frowned when she still didn't move. "Did he say something else to you?"

Delta shook her head. "I'm just trying to figure out when I finally just gave into him." She sighed and put the helmet back on her head. "I stopped fighting him, Jax. There was no point from the way I saw it." She bit her lip and looked back at him. "Does that make me a bad person?"

Jax shook his head. "The only bad person here is Hale, Delta. You did what you thought was best for the club." He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "We're all better prepared this time. Just do something for me from now on."

"What's that?" Delta asked as he pulled away and started walking towards his own bike.

Jax straddled his seat and pulled on his own helmet. "Never stop fighting."

* * *

"They're back." Clay said as he heard his engine roar into the lot. Jackson's bike following behind it. He glanced down at his watch and then looked up to Gemma, standing behind the bar. "Something happened or she made him and turned back to chew our asses out."

"She knows not to mess with me." Gemma stated before she walked out to the lot ahead of the Clay.

Before Delta could turn off the bike herself, Jax reached over, turned the key, and yanked it out of the ignition before jogging up the clubhouse steps to Clay and Gemma. He slapped the keys into Clay's hand. "Someone needs to be with her at all times. Hale didn't hesitate to find her." He brushed by his parents, slipping into the clubhouse, while they looked to their daughter.

Clay shuffled down the steps and walked over to her, placing his hands on the handlebars of his bike so he was facing her. Gemma wasn't far behind him when his gruff voice echoed on the empty lot. "What happened?"

"He's here to stay, and he's not afraid of the club." Delta stated, clipping the helmet around the handlebar. She crossed her arms over her chest, still straddling the leather seat beneath her. "He started bringing up old shit."

Gemma sat on Jax's bike next to Clay's, trying to remain calm with the storm brewing inside of her. "He wants you to start things up again, doesn't he?"

Delta chuckled darkly. "Yeah, said I'd enjoy it as much as last time." She started pulling her hair up, tying it with a hairband from her wrist. "It took everything in me not to shove a gun down his throat."

"I don't want you going anywhere alone." Clay whispered, moving around the bike to wrap his arm around her. He kissed the top of her head when she wrapped her arms around him. "And, it won't be the prospects. They haven't been around long enough for me to trust them. Between Jax, Tiggy, Opie, and I, we should have eyes on you all the time."

Delta stood up from the bike, pulling off her leather jacket. "For once, I agree with you." She draped it over her arm. "Hale left Charming, heading towards the city. I think he's meeting ATF at the airport."

"We have a shipment coming in a few days." Clay sighed before heading towards the clubhouse. "We'll be in the Chapel."

Gemma looked up at her daughter and examined her, seeing no marks or bruises. "Did he try anything?"

Delta shook her head. "Jax came roaring up on his bike and sucker punched him. His blood is on highway 39." She sat down next to her mother, welcoming her embrace. "I don't want to go back. I don't want to be that girl who can't take a walk in her own town without being babysat or stalked. It only made me crazy the first time around."

"I know, baby. But, this is for your own good." Gemma sighed, rubbing her back. "I have some paperwork to finish up. Why don't you go work on your car? It would be a nice distraction right now." She smiled gently when Delta agreed with her and stood, heading towards the garage. Pulling her phone out of her pocket, she dialed without even looking at the screen. "I need you to keep me updated on everything Hale is doing. I want to know everything, even details as small as if he has a new pimple on his ass." She rolled her eyes hearing the reluctance on the other side of the line. "Unser, you know what he did last time he was here. He shouldn't have a badge. Either you do this, or Charming will get a lot worse before it gets better." She snapped her phone shut before standing herself and heading for her office.

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	3. Chapter 3

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Delta grunted as she lifted the tire into place near the front of her car. She smiled when she got two lug nuts on and twisted them until the tire was staying in place. She wiped her leather covered hand over the dirty white Volkswagen Beetle. "You'll be back to your glory in no time, girl." She grinned before she heard multiple cars pulling onto the lot. Standing up, she peeked around the fence to find Unser in his cop car pulling up with two unmarked ones. "Shit." She breathed when she saw Hale sitting in the passenger seat of one of the unmarked cars. A woman with longer light brown hair sat in the driver's seat.

She grabbed the crowbar off of the ground and stepped out of her corner of the lot. Gemma stood in the office doorway out of the corner of her eye. "Come here, baby." Gemma said, motioning her hand for Delta to come closer. "Jesus." She breathed out when Clay and the boys started strutting out of the clubhouse like they were arriving at a party.

Clay growled low in his throat when he saw Hale climb out of the car. He turned his gaze to Unser. "Well, what is the visit for, officers?"

"It's a courtesy, Clay." Unser stated.

"It's Agent Stahl." The tall woman said, extending her badge out for the group to see. "I'm sure you know why I'm here."

Tiggy jumped up from the bag of the group. "The pole is inside!"

Stahl glared at the cackling group of men before catching Gemma and Delta standing by the office, cool and collected. She turned back to Clay. "Your wife and daughter have popped up on my radar a few times as well." She smirked when the men went silent, all turning from immature men to rigid bikers. "I was surprised to find records on you guys, but I never expected the entire MC family to be in the system."

Clay stepped forward. "We haven't done anything. So, I suggest you find the real criminals and take care of them." He glanced at Hale before walking towards Gemma and Delta.

"I think we're done then." Stahl said, mostly to herself, before getting back into the unmarked car.

Delta felt a shiver run down her spine when she saw Hale staring at her. She looked back at the boys when she heard Chibs yelling over them, moving towards Hale. "What are ya lookin' at? Get back in your car." He threw his hands up when Hale got into the car, turning to her with a wink.

"Get inside." Clay mumbled under his breath, grabbing Delta's arm and pulling her towards the office door protectively. Once she was inside, he turned to watch the police cars roll away. "He's even more ballsy than the last time."

Gemma rested her hand on the back of his neck before looking at her daughter. "You're sleeping in our room tonight."

"What? Ew." Delta gagged, crossing her arms over her chest. "I've got a gun in my room. I'll be fine."

"That wasn't a suggestion." Gemma stated, looking back at her daughter in the office.

Delta rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to sleep on the floor next to my parents' bed. I'm not letting Hale uproot everything in my life again. I'll be fine ten feet from your room." She grabbed her bag from on top of the filing cabinet. "Besides, he's got Stahl to distract him."

Clay's brows furrowed together when his daughter bounded down the steps past him. "You think he and Stahl are. . ."

"He likes chicks with lighter hair. Never let a chance slip by to tell me I should lighten mine." Delta stated before yanking out her keys from her bag. "I gotta get a few things from the hardware store."

"Go grab Tig. But, you come right back here." Clay stated before kissing her forehead and watching her jog towards the clubhouse. "I can see it in her eyes, Gem. There's a lot more to this thing than we know."

Gemma sighed. "We never did ask her how it started. Once we found out she was pregnant because of Hale, we went on a war path. Hale left, the baby died, we were dealing with the new shit." She stepped down so that she was only one above Clay, resting her head against his from behind. "You still have cameras at the house, right?"

Clay held up his phone. "They've been on for a few hours. Fully functional. We will know if there's a mouse eating food in the kitchen if we really want to fucking know." He wrapped his arm behind him, wrapping it around Gemma's waist. "I'm more worried about her heart. She ended up in the hospital when the baby died. I don't want her going through a surgery over this."

"We just need to keep her away from Hale." Gemma breathed. "She's a strong girl, baby. She was strong when she was two hours old, and she's strong now."

"She was much easier to keep track of when she was two hours old." Clay grumbled, smiling when he felt his wife chuckle against his back.

* * *

Clay groaned as he swung his legs out of the bed, rubbing at his eyes. "What are you doing?" Gemma's tired voice asked from behind him, jostled awake from his movements. She glanced over at her alarm clock. "It's not even three."

"I'm thirsty." Clay yawned before grabbing his phone. His eyes widened when his cameras were brought up. "Gem, was Delta going anywhere tonight?"

"No, why?" Gemma asked, leaning up on her arms.

Clay reached into his nightstand and pulled out his handgun. "She's not in her room." He stood up and set his phone down. He hurried out to the hallway, hearing Gemma wrap herself up in a robe as she hurried after him. She pushed open Delta's bedroom door to find the room was empty. "There isn't a light on downstairs." He whispered before slowly walking down a few steps. He crouched down and held out his gun as he looked around, finding Delta sitting on the window bench in the living room staring out the window. "Gem, she's down here."

Gemma covered her chest with her hand. "Jesus."

The two walked down the stairs and made their way to the living room. Apparently, neither one of them caught Delta's attention, because she jumped slightly when Clay's voice broke the silence. "What are you doing down here?"

Delta slid her gun under her leg and wiped away the tears that had gathered in her eyes before looking up at her parents. "Nothing. I just couldn't sleep."

"So, you carry around your gun and look out at the road when you can't sleep." Gemma stated with a nod of her head before walking over to her daughter. Slapping her leg slightly, she pulled Delta's gun out and looked inside the chamber. "Fully loaded too."

"Baby, what's going on?" Clay asked, setting his gun down on the coffee table.

Delta huffed out a breath as she looked down at the cushion she was sitting on, picking at the lose strings and old fabric. "I don't want history repeating itself."

Gemma sat down next to her, bringing Delta's legs into her lap. "We're not going to let that happen, baby. Hale isn't going to touch you this time around. We're going to take care of him as soon as we think it's safe to."

Clay shrugged his shoulders. "It might make you feel better if you tell us what happened last time. We know a little bit, but we don't even know how any of it got started." He took Delta's gun from Gemma's outstretched hand and placed it next to his on the table. "It will help us protect you if we know what all he has up his sleeves."

"Hale said he had evidence on you. . .about John Teller." Delta breathed. "I knew the truth, and I knew that evidence would put you away. It would put both of you away." She tucked some hair behind her ear. "He said that he would make the evidence go away if I did him a favor."

"So, it was just the one time." Clay stated. He heart dropped to his stomach when Delta shook her head slowly. "How long?"

Delta cleared her throat. "Nearly six months." She bit her lip, debating her next words. "I blew him in his office the first time. He said he would get rid of the evidence first thing. Three days later, he pulled me out of class to have sex in his car. Said he didn't feel my service was enough to get rid of murder charges yet." She looked back out the window. "He would tell the principal he had to ask me a few questions about the club. He didn't bat an eye. He took me to his office, to his house, even to the holding cells down at the station." She let her chin rest on her knee, hugging her legs to her chest. "I found out I was pregnant a few weeks before he told me he was leaving for the city. Of course, he ended up staying here for a few more months because of club business. The baby was gone two days after he left. He never knew." She shook her head. "I found out from Unser later that he never had any evidence to back up the claims. He was bluffing the entire time."

Gemma leaned over and kissed Delta's head when Clay spoke up, his voice cracking. "Did he ever. . .in this house?"

"No, he knew better than to push the boundaries that far." Delta whispered before glancing to her gun. "But, you're right. He's not afraid of the club like the last time. I don't know what he's going to try." She finally looked up at Clay, her heart breaking when she saw the tears in his eyes. "There's nothing you could've done."

"We should've paid more attention to you." Gemma whispered, brushing back some of her hair. She used her hand to cover Delta's chest, feeling her irregular heartbeat thud underneath. "You need to stay calm. You almost got a matching scar last time Hale was around."

Clay cleared his throat. "Speaking of which, looking out the window in the middle of the night can't be helping you any." He stood up and walked over to his daughter, reaching under her and lifting her into his arms.

Delta gasped as she clung to her father. "Dad, your hands."

"They're fine. You're sleeping in our room." Clay breathed before looking back at Gemma. "You coming, Mama?"

"Right behind you." Gemma replied, grabbing both guns from the coffee table and following her husband up the stairs.

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	4. Chapter 4

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Gemma walked into the kitchen the next morning to find Clay slumped over a coffee cup at the small table. Dark circles drooped under his eyes and his knuckles were bruised and bloodied. "What happened to you last night? You said you were going for a ride, and you never came back upstairs."

"I couldn't. Not after hearing all of that last night." Clay said, shaking his head. "How is she?"

"She was worried about you." Gemma stated, filling up her own cup of coffee. "Drove herself to exhaustion." She leaned against the counter and jutted her chin towards his red hands. "What did you tear into last night?"

Clay held up his hands. "I would've preferred Hale. I settled for the side of the police station." He pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes. "I called Jax. Told him what Delta told us. We were going to go after him, Gem. I was ready to put him in the dark hole he deserved."

Gemma noticed the lack of blood on his clothes. "But, you didn't."

"She was right." Clay breathed. "Jax and I walked to his office. The door was slightly open. Hale was enjoying that ATF pussy, just like Delta predicted." He looked over at his wife. "He's been here a lot longer than we thought. He has pictures of her from weeks ago. He knows her car, her schedule. He has every club member down, which is understandable. You have a record yourself. Delta doesn't even have a parking ticket. Her mouth is what gets her in trouble. You can't charge a crime for that."

"At least, Hale has something other than Delta to keep his attention." Gemma breathed before joining him at the table. She reached over and rubbed her fingers into his hands, feeling the tense muscles under the the bruises. "She's up in her bathroom getting ready. Why don't you go show her that you're okay before she really starts to freak out?"

Clay nodded his head. "I suppose." He swallowed the remains of his coffee before leaning over and kissing her head. "You look good today, Mama."

Gemma smirked. "Really?" She chuckled behind her coffee cup. "Too bad you ruined your hands. I'd have a job for those fingers if they didn't just come back from war."

"Jesus, you're going to kill me one day saying words like that." Clay groaned as he shuffled towards the stairs.

* * *

Clay spotted Delta combing her hair looking in at the mirror. The only trait she got from him was the blue eyes that eventually found him staring at her in the hallway. She turned quickly and hurried over. "Where the hell have you been?" Before she got too close, she noticed the blood caked on his fingers. "What did you do?"

"I'm innocent this time." Clay said holding up his hands. He reached out and cupped her face in one of his hands, smiling gently when she seemed to relax from his touch. "Nothing to worry about, baby."

Delta sighed as she took his hand into both of hers, examining the damage he'd done to himself. "You make me worry about you. I didn't ask you to go after him."

Clay shook his head and pinched her chin gently between his large fingers, making her look him in the eye. "You never have to ask for my protection. Even if you don't always want it, you have it." He let his hand drop, shuffling his feet once again. "You were right about that ATF bitch too. Hale was face deep in that shit last night when Jax and I went to visit him." He saw her eyes widen and shook his head. "He didn't even know we were there."

"I'm just surprised how fast she let her pants drop." Delta stated before smirking. "Might be something to mention next time she decides to drop by unannounced."

"You stay away from her." Clay said, pointing his finger at her. "She's not afraid to get her hands dirty. I don't want you in the crosshairs."

Delta stared up at her father. "Hale is helping her with whatever case she is trying to build against us. He will not pass up the opportunity to see me, and he has to do that through her. I'm not in the crosshairs; I'm the literal battle ground. It's not if I could get hurt. It's how much fire power will be thrown my way before we can put it all behind us." She looked off into space for a moment before hugging Clay, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You scared me last night when you didn't show up."

Clay kissed the top of her head as his arms wound around her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." He cupped the back of her head. "There was just a lot of information to take in last night. It's not easy knowing your little girl has been hurt."

"I'm not so little anymore." Delta breathed, resting her head against his shoulder.

"You may be eighteen, but I still see my newborn baby girl." Clay stated. He chuckled softly. "I thought I was going to break you in the hospital. You were so small. Your hand couldn't even wrap around my finger, but you had a grip. That's for sure." He squeezed her gently again before pulling away. "Why don't you go to the shop with your mother? I'll be there in a few hours."

Delta watched Clay walk back towards his and Gemma's shared bedroom. "You promise?"

Clay smirked at her over his shoulder. "President's Oath."

* * *

"Thank God that bitch is gone." Gemma smirked as she walked into the office, looking at her daughter sorting out files on the floor. "The whale is finally taking her blue mini van out of the lot."

"Took long enough." Delta scoffed. She watched as her mother walked behind the desk and sat down. "Were you serious about my heart last night?"

Gemma paused as she reached for a pen. "Why would I joke about that?"

"No, that's not what I meant." Delta sighed before sitting on her calves. "I thought the doctor said that I should be out of the woods once I turn eighteen. Jax has the same condition, and he goes through a lot more than I do."

Gemma rolled her eyes. "I don't care what the doctor says. We are never out of the woods. Besides, Jax wasn't hospitalized for two weeks because of his heart." She started looking over the paperwork on her desk. "You had your father shitting himself. Doctors nearly put me in a room because of my heart."

Delta looked down at her mother's boots peeking out from underneath the desk. "It was just stress."

"You nearly had open heart surgery, so don't tell me it was just fucking stress." Gemma snapped back. She looked back down at her desk, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath. "I'm not going to lose another kid because of this. That's why you're going to listen to your father and I and keep away from Hale."

"I never had plans to go after him." Delta breathed. She sighed again, this time ignoring her task of sorting files. "What do you think that ATF agent is going to do to the club?"

Gemma pursed her lips together and gazed at Delta. "I don't know, baby."

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	5. Chapter 5

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"Hey Delta!" Jax called out, trying to get her attention off of her car. She was squatting down near the front bumper, a mask over her face and the blow torch in her hand. She didn't flinch at the sound of his name. "Delta!" He yelled a little louder. When she didn't respond, Jax reached around her shoulder and turned down the gas output, making her turn towards him.

"What are you doing?" Delta asked as she turned the blow torch off, using her bulky leather gloves on her hand to lift up the mask. "I'm working here."

Jax chuckled. "I can see that." He looked down at the bumper that she was just fixing, noticing the improvement on her handiwork. "Are you keeping this once it's finished?"

Delta smiled as she took off her mask, dropping it and the leather gloves onto the bench by the fence. "I'm thinking about it." She grabbed an old cloth and ran it over the hood, cleaning off some of the dirt. "Mom and Dad wouldn't let me drive it if I finish it the way it was originally designed. I'd have to reinforce it with something that's stronger than metal."

Jax smirked listening to his baby sister talk about the mechanics for the Volkswagen in front of him. "You'd have to structure it so it wouldn't come crashing into the car and kill you either." He opened up the hood, examining the empty space. He chuckled when Delta opened up the driver's side door and it nearly fell off its hinges. Helping her close the door, he leaned against it. "Even if you make all those improvements though, Clay is never going to hand over the keys."

"You didn't notice your gun was missing until I pointed it in your face." Delta smirked. "Dad won't notice I have the keys until the car isn't here." She crossed her arms over her chest and stared up at her brother. "He told me you two went after Hale last night."

Jax's smirk dropped as he crossed his own arms over his chest. "You never told me that it went on for as long as it did. I could've protected you."

Delta shrugged. "I didn't tell anyone. I did what I did to protect people who didn't need protecting in the end." She tossed her rag aside. "Besides, I can't go running to the club every time I have a problem."

"That's what the club is here for." Jax stated. "It's a family. We protect each other because we care. It's not an obligation." He dropped his hands to her shoulders, shaking them slightly as if to shake any other ideas out of her. "If you get hurt, we all get hurt. The club felt it the last time. It's feeling it now. I'm your big brother. Do you know how much hurt I feel when you hurt? I feel all of it."

Delta stepped around her brother. "No one could feel what I felt."

Jax reached around and grabbed her arm, pulling her closer. "Don't be like that. I get that you went through a lot, but so did all of us. You chose to shut us out. You chose to give up and let Hale have his way with you. So, don't get mad at me if I happen to want to change that this time around."

"Jax." Gemma's voice interrupted the siblings' argument, her tone more of a warning than a greeting. "Let go of your sister."

Delta and Jax glared at one another as his arm roughly let go of her arm, more pushing than dropping it. "Mommy to the rescue, huh?"

Delta smirked. "Only to protect you." She pushed passed him again, making her way back to her car.

"No, you are done working on your car." Gemma stated, pointing to her daughter. She looked at Jax. "I want to talk to you."

"What am I supposed to do?" Delta asked, dropping her hands to her hips.

Gemma pointed to the office. "Go do some paperwork for a little while. There hasn't been many phone calls today, so it shouldn't be too much." She looked back at Jax, noticing his gaze fixed on his sister. "Jax, go to your dorm. I'll be there in a minute."

Jax grumbled something under his breath as he left the small gated area. Delta crossed her arms over her chest. "Are you going to lecture me first?"

"If you use that tone, I will." Gemma retorted. She reached out and played with the loose strands of hair hanging down onto her daughter's shoulders. "You know he's just trying to protect you. He doesn't know the whole story, baby. He's lashing out, because he can't do anything about it right now." She pecked her lips. "What happened isn't your fault though. He's wrong about that. You might have stopped fighting, but you didn't choose what happened."

Delta sighed when Gemma wrapped her arms around her, cupping the back of her head. "It would be easier if I moved away. The anger would still be in everyone, but there wouldn't be a constant reminder of what happened. I wouldn't be a constant reminder."

Gemma shook her head. "Don't talk like that. You know the guys would be lost without you here. They adore you. The only reminder is Hale, and he will be taken care of in time. Believe me. If he runs again, I will hunt him down even if your father says no."

* * *

Jax puffed out a breath, taking a drag of his cigarette, when Gemma walked into his room. He glanced up at her before looking back down at his feet, perched on the end of his bed. "Protecting the baby of the family again, huh?"

"You know damn well that's not the reason I pulled you out of there." Gemma nearly barked at him. She took a deep breath. "For Christ's sake, Jax. Don't you think Delta feels shitty enough about this situation without you throwing the club's guilt her way. You know she loves this club just like you do."

"She has a funny way of showing it." Jax snipped. He puffed out another breath of smoke. "She gave into Hale without telling any of us what was going on."

Gemma crossed her arms over her chest. "Do you know why the whole thing started?" She saw Jax look back down at his feet, avoiding her gaze altogether. "Hale told her that he was going to put Clay and I in prison, hurt you with the evidence he claimed to have. If he had been telling the truth and he had evidence like that, it would've torn this club, this family apart. She would be left with two parents in prison, most likely dead. A brother who would despise the club he grew up in."

Jax furrowed his eyebrows. "Exactly what did Hale claim to have?"

"He told Delta that he was going to put Clay and I away for J.T.'s murder." Gemma breathed, seeing the shock rush over her son's face. "He found out that J.T. had a whore over in Ireland, saw it as motive for me to get rid of him, and for Clay to have his shot with me." She shoved her hands into her back pockets. "J.T. did have a girl over in Ireland. He was spending more time with her than he was with you or Thomas, or the club, for that matter." She sat down on the bed, biting her lip. "I won't lie. I wanted J.T. to burn for what he was doing to the family. But, I didn't kill him."

Jax put out his cigarette. "I know you didn't, Ma." He sat up, running a hand through his hair. "Hale blackmailed Delta with that."

Gemma nodded her head. "He knew that your relationship with us wasn't the greatest with you being with Tara. We weren't exactly thrilled with that unholy union." She ignored her son's glare as she continued. "Delta knew that one reason to despise us forever would be good enough for you, even if there wasn't evidence to back it up." She brushed off the leather covering his shoulder. "What she did. . .she did it to protect you, to protect us."

". . .You could give me a heads up before I act like an asshole to my baby sister." Jax mumbled, running a hand down his face.

"If I had to do that, I would have to follow you around twenty-four seven." Gemma chuckled. "I'm not asking you to apologize, because your sister knows that you didn't mean it. Just. . .cut her some slack when it comes to this. She's already having a hard time."

Jax nodded. "That's what Clay said last night." He squeezed Gemma's hand in his large one. "I want to kill him."

Gemma smiled sympathetically at him. "You will, baby. Just in time."

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	6. Chapter 6

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Jax sighed as he walked into the office, finding his little sister mindlessly filling out the paperwork that littered his mother's desk. He knocked twice on the doorframe, gaining her attention. "Have you seen the kid yet?"

Delta dropped her pen down on the metal. "If you're talking about your son, then no. I have not seen 'the kid'." She glanced back down at her paperwork. "Have you?"

"No," Jax admitted, cocking his head to the side, "was wondering if you wanted to come with me now. Ma wants us to go and show a family front. He's only a day old, but it's important to her." He noticed her hesitation. "I'm scared too. I don't want to know him if I'm going to lose him. But, I can't think like that." He caught her blue eyes with his. "I think we could both use some clarity on what's important."

Delta bit her lip. "Do I have to hold him?"

"I don't think we can yet, why?" Jax asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

Delta ran a hand through her hair. "I just don't think I could do it."

Jax felt a pang of sadness hit him when she ran a hand over her stomach, quickly moving it away. She was too much like their mother for her own good, hiding her weaknesses to keep up a strong front. He smiled softly at her. "You can do it at your own pace, sis. It's not like you're the one who's going to change his diapers."

"Knowing you, I probably will." Delta smirked before standing up and joining him in the doorway. She kissed his cheek and patted his chest. "Thanks."

* * *

"He's in here." Tara said outside of one of the rooms in the ICU. She watched as Gemma, Jax, and Delta peered in through the small window on the door. "You can talk to him. It's better for him to have some sort of human contact."

"Thanks, Tara." Jax nodded before she walked away. He looked at his mother. "You wanna go first."

Gemma rolled her eyes and opened the door, shoving her two kids inside. "You two act like he's poisonous. It's fine." She closed the door and smiled seeing her grandson laying in the small incubator. Although his size was small and the doctors believed he wouldn't make it until next week, it still warmed her heart to see the young Teller still fighting. "There's our Abel."

Jax stared down at his son. "He's so little." He followed the mess of wires that erupted from his tiny body. There seemed to be more wire than him. "There's a lot in there, Ma."

"I know. It's helping him live though, baby." Gemma breathed. She wrapped her arm around her daughter's waist, kissing her head. "You doing okay?" She whispered close enough to her ear so Jax wouldn't hear.

Delta slowly nodded her head, keeping her distance from her nephew. "I'm alright." She felt her mother try to pull her closer. "I'm okay right here." She closed her eyes when Gemma pulled her closer anyway.

"Open your eyes, darlin'." Gemma breathed, brushing back her daughter's hair. She waited until Delta slowly opened her eyes, looking down at Abel for the first time. "I know it's hard, but it's going to help you."

Delta felt a weight hit her chest. "I need some air." Dodging her mother's arm, she hurried out of the small room. Sitting down in the closest chair, she tried to regulate her breathing, covering her face with her hands as she leaned forward.

"Well, look who I found."

Delta felt her stomach drop as she looked down through her fingers. Black loafer shoes, tan slacks. "Hale." She leaned back in her chair, letting her arms drop as she looked up to find the man in uniform in front of her. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Hale shrugged his shoulders. "I thought I might run into you here. Heard about Jax's boy. Asked his doctor friend where I could find him. Funny. She was around when you and I were an item. Yet, she doesn't know."

"We were never an item." Delta scoffed. "Well, you found me. What did you come here for?"

Hale smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. "I want an answer, and it better be the one I want to hear. Unser won't be running Charming for much longer. Things will go a lot better for you and your club if you cooperate with me." He leaned down, gripping the chair arms with his hands. "Biker babe hooks up with cop. Kind of a fairy tale ending for you compared to where your club will take you."

"My club keeps me away from you." Delta smirked. She shrugged her shoulders innocently. "I'll pass. Better keep getting your pussy from that ATF bitch."

All kindness drained from Hale's face. "How the hell did you know about that?"

Delta pushed on his chest, forcing him to stand up. "You're not the only one with people in this town." She stood up, crossing her arms over her chest. "So, worry more about keeping it in your pants than trying to get down mine." She felt herself relax when she saw Clay and Opie getting off the elevator at the end of the hallway. "Bye, Hale."

Hale's nose flared as he glared down at her. "We're not through here."

"Yes," Clay gritted out, grabbing his arm and whirling him around to face him, "you are. Now, beat it before I personally stuff you into a body bag."

"Toss around words like that and I can arrest you. Who will protect your girl then?" Hale asked with a smirk. He slid his sunglasses on and looked back to Delta. "See you around, Morrow. Play your cards right and that bitch could join us."

Opie shoved Hale's shoulder. "Learn what's good for you and piss off."

When Hale was a good distance down the hallway, Clay put a hand on Delta's back, pulling her slightly closer. "You okay?"

"Believe it or not. I was handling myself better out here than I was in there." Delta stated, pointing towards Abel's hospital room. She sighed running a hand through her hair. "Mom and Jax are inside."

Clay nodded his head. "I know. I'm not going in though until I now you're okay."

Delta shook her head. "I'm fine, Dad. He didn't do anything to me." She smiled up at him to reassure him. "Just don't tell them that Hale was here. I don't want to add to Jax's stress. He's already got enough on his plate."

"I'll watch her, Clay." Opie nodded his head, raising his hand slightly.

Clay huffed out a breath. "Alright." He pointed his finger at Delta. "If you don't see Ope, you're not where you're supposed to be."

"Got it." Delta huffed out before pushing her father towards the hospital room. When he disappeared behind the door, she looked up at Opie. "How are you holding up?"

Opie shrugged. "I'm alright I guess. Torn between two loves as always." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "I get to see the kids on the weekends. Donna agreed to that much when she moved out at least."

Delta nodded his head. "As hard as it was to see you go through all that with Donna, it's good to see you in the club again. To see you back with your family and happy again." She bit her lip. "Do you still love her?"

Opie paused for a moment before answering. "I love the girl that I married. But, we both changed. That girl isn't there anymore. I loved her because she accepted who I was and embraced the lifestyle. After we had the kids, all of that changed. Donna wanted nothing to do with the club." He stared down at the floor. "Visiting your husband in prison can do that to you."

"I remember visiting Dad." Delta breathed before bumping her arm into his. "You'll find the right girl, Ope."

"You know my opinion about that subject." Opie half smirked, raising his eyebrows towards her. "You, however, are a ticking time bomb waiting to happen if Hale keeps cornering you like that." Opie stated, reminding her of the unwanted encounter.

Delta rolled her eyes. "He's not desperate. He's got that Stahl agent to satisfy his dick for the time being. Once she leaves though, I'll be in trouble." She smiled slightly up at him. "Sorry, I know it probably isn't something you want to talk about. I don't really want to talk about it."

Opie cocked his head to the side. "The more I know, the better I can protect you." He sat down in the chair in front of her. "But if you don't want to talk about it, we can talk about something else. Are your parents still as loud as they were when Jax and I were your age?"

"You're disgusting." Delta chuckled.

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	7. Chapter 7

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Gemma set down the laundry basket on her bed, humming along to the radio that played on her dresser, when Clay walked in. She smiled up at him before noticing the tension in his jaw. "What happened?" She watched as he sat at the end of their bed and laid back, covering his eyes with his arms. "Who?"

"No one died, Gem." Clay finally relented. He paused a moment longer before coming clean. "Delta told me to hold off on telling you, but you need to know." He sat up and turned to his wife, seeing the fear in her eyes. "Hale showed up at the hospital today, earlier when we went to see the kid."

"Hale came to the hospital?" Gemma asked, eyebrows raised. She straightened herself, trying to gain some composure. "What'd he do?"

Clay shook his head. "I don't think he did anything. He's trying to get into her head though." He rubbed his chin, feeling the stubble against his palm. "I found him talking to her outside of Abel's room, in the hallway. Even made some comment about that agent joining them."

Gemma sat down, facing away from Clay. "Ten feet away. I was ten feet away and he still got to her."

"Gem, baby-" Clay began.

Gemma interrupted him, jerking herself away from his outstretched hand. "No! We failed her the first time this all went down. We are not failing her again, Clay. We're not! If this gets out of hand, we're not just talking about a few fucks in the back of a car. We're talking about her health, her heart. One episode and it's a slippery slope."

Clay stood up, grabbing her hips and pulling her closer to get her attention. "We're not going to let it get that far. Okay? It's not going to come to that." He pushed back some of her hair, his fingers brushing her cheeks. "She's a strong girl, Gem. Look at what's she's been through."

"That's what scares me." Gemma stated.

* * *

"Jax, you need to get me out of here. I'm going insane being under house arrest." Delta whispered into her cell phone. "Isn't there a club party tonight?"

Jax sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "Yes, but I'm not sure that's a good idea. I know you'll be safe here, but I won't be safe from Ma." He climbed onto his bike, draping his free arm over the handlebar. "Why do you want to come to a party anyway? You hate them. The guys get plastered. The girls somehow get sluttier. The place reeks of sex and cigarettes."

Delta rolled her eyes. "At this point, I'd be happy with that. Mom and Dad are driving me nuts. When I got up to go to the bathroom, Clay interrogated me on where I was going. Jax, I need this."

Jax closed his eyes. "I know I'll regret this." He mumbled. "Fine. Tell them that I'll watch you. I'll be by to get you."

"Got it." Delta breathed, her thanks echoed in her tone. She hung up her phone and pulled on her leather jacket before trotting downstairs. She jumped when Gemma came around the corner. "Jesus, Ma."

"Where are you going?" Gemma asked, ignoring her daughter's surprise.

Delta shrugged her shoulders. "Jax is picking me up. He wants to spend some time together as siblings before the party at the club tonight." She slipped her phone into the pocket in her jeans. "I was just going to spend the night at the clubhouse."

Gemma crossed her arms over her chest. "Where are you going to sleep?"

"I'll use Dad's dorm. He barely uses it anyway. Nobody is coming in for the party. Easy." Delta stated before grabbing her leather boots and pulling them up over her jeans. "Trust me. I'm not going to leave the party to come home without calling someone." She turned around and bumped into Clay. "Why do you two suddenly make no noise when you move? You two barely start having sex and I have to cover my ears with my pillow." She walked around Clay, searching for her wallet.

Clay cleared his throat. "I don't want you going to that party. It's filled with horny club members and alcohol up to your eyeballs. It isn't safe for you."

"If I stay here, I'll be up all night driving myself paranoid." Delta sighed before grabbing her wallet from the kitchen counter. She turned back to her parents, finding them in the same stance with the same glare. "I promise. I won't drink. All the guys at the party will be club members. One look at me and they know it's lights out if they even think about touching me. Even if Hale shows up, the guys are still good aims and everything is legal outside of Tiggy's dorm." She pulled her hair up into a bun before dropping her hands to her hips, exhaling sharply. "I need a night where I'm not freaking out or worrying about Hale getting to me. Even if it's only for a few hours, I need that break."

Gemma sighed. "I can't argue that."

Clay wanted to argue, but he couldn't either. Not after waking up in the middle of the night to find his daughter standing guard in the living room because she couldn't sleep. Walking over to her, he wrapped his arms around her smaller frame and kissed her cheek. "Just be really careful, okay? If someone shows up that you don't know, you call me."

"I will." Delta whispered with a smile before hearing Jax's bike down the road. "That's me."

* * *

"Give me a fucking beer!" Tiggy yelled at one of the prospects across the bar. The younger man nearly jumped out of his skin before grabbing a beer from down below, handing it to Tiggy with a shaking hand. He flinched yet again when the club members witnessing the exchange started laughing obnoxiously.

Delta rolled her eyes as she stood in the corner, observing the game of a pool in front of her. She really did hate these parties, but she was enjoying herself more watching the boys frighten the prospects than let her mind control her own fear. Her ears perked when she heard Jax. He strutted through the bar, a blonde crow eater dangling from his arm as they headed back towards the dorms. "Gross." She mumbled under her breath.

She heard a chuckle beside her and found Opie grinning ear to ear with a beer in his hand. He stepped closer to her. "You sound just like your mother when you do that."

"Should I take that as a compliment?" Delta asked with a smirk, tilting her own drink back, keeping her promise of no alcohol so far.

Opie held up his hands, palms facing her. "Take it however you want it."

Delta rolled her eyes again. "Shouldn't you be browsing through the crow eaters, picking your fuck buddy for the night?" She glanced at a few of the girls walking by, their asses hanging out of their shorts.

"Well, I picked a fuck buddy, but she ain't no crow eater." Opie stated under his breath, his beer bottle pressed against his lips.

"Oh, really?" Delta asked with a smirk of her own.

* * *

Delta moaned when Opie grabbed her thighs and hoisted her up onto his dresser, the cold mirror brushing the skin on her back. She sucked his lower lip into her mouth as he shoved his boxers down his legs, stepping out of them and kicking them to the side. She pulled off his hat before his hands were on her again, pulling her to the edge of the dark wood. She gasped when he thrust inside her and began sucking on the side of her neck. He groaned as his teeth grazed her flesh. "Fuck, Ope."

Opie grinned into her neck. "Trying to make up for lost time."

"Missed me that much, huh?" Delta asked with a smirk but whimpered when Opie's hips bucked against hers.

Opie cupped his hand around her throat, turning her face to his. "Like you wouldn't believe."

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	8. Chapter 8

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Opie groaned rubbing his eyes, trying to adjust to the sunlight pouring in through his window. His eyes popped open though when he felt Delta's body still sleeping on top of his. "Shit." He mumbled before sitting up. "Delta, you gotta wake up."

"Fuck you. I'm tired." Delta said, still half asleep. She curled herself against his chest, tucking her head into his neck. That's when the sunlight hit her eyes. "It's morning."

"Quarter to eight to be exact." Opie stated before helping her off of him, grunting when she plopped down on the bed beside him. He scratched the back of his head. "You need to get some clothes on."

Delta furrowed her eyebrows. "You think my parents would come in this early?"

"No, but if you don't put something on, you won't be leaving at all." Opie smirked, chuckling when she rolled her eyes with a blush. He leaned down and kissed her lips before standing up and heading towards the bathroom. "But, you should get to Clay's dorm before some of the guys start waking up. If one of them sees you, Clay will know about it."

Delta rolled onto her stomach, propping herself up on her elbows as she smiled at Opie. "They know I'm not a virgin, Ope. As long as they don't know who it is, you won't have a gun shoved down your throat."

"Tempting." Opie said sarcastically before looking back at her, staring at her for a moment before shaking his head. "Very tempting." He pointed towards his bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower. You wouldn't want to join me, would you?"

Delta bit her lip, the corners of her mouth curving upwards. "I thought you wanted me to go."

Opie shrugged his shoulders. "I changed my mind."

"DELTA!" They both jumped hearing Clay's voice boom throughout the clubhouse, soon followed by the sound of Gemma's high heeled boots stomping on the ground as she marched towards the dorms.

Delta scrambled out of the bed, tugging her jeans on. She grabbed her tank and slipped it over her head before feeling Opie's hands on her waistband, buttoning and zipping the front of her pants. He picked up her leather jacket and held it up to let her slip her arms through the arms. "Where's your wallet?" He asked looking around.

"I left it out in the office." Delta stated before pulling on her boots. She opened his window and hoisted herself up onto the ledge, sitting on the sill and turning back to Opie. "Give me your headphones."

"Why?" Opie asked, handing her his headphones anyway.

Delta hooked them around her neck, plugging the end into her phone. "I may need them." She swung her legs out of the window, grabbing the top of the sill with her hands when she felt Opie's hands grab her waist.

"You're not a kid anymore. You'll hurt yourself trying to jump down in those heels." Opie argued.

"It's been a few months, not a few years." Delta stated with a roll of her eyes before kicking off the side of the clubhouse and jumping down the few feet to the ground. She stumbled slightly with her heels, but she quickly recovered and smirked at Opie over her shoulder, catching his eyes in the open window. She clicked on a music app on her phone before bringing the headphones up over her ears, casually making her way inside the clubhouse.

* * *

"I swear to God. I'm going to kill that girl." Gemma growled as she searched Clay's dorm, not finding a trace of their daughter. She turned when Clay walked out of the bathroom, seeing him shake his head. "Shit. You don't think that Hale actually showed up last night, do you?"

Clay shrugged his shoulders. "We just woke up half of Charming and none of the boys here have moved a muscle. It's easy to get by them." His whole body relaxed when Delta walked through the door, headphones covering her ears. "Gem."

Gemma looked towards the door and nearly yanked the headphones off of Delta's head. "Where the hell were you? We've been looking for you for fifteen minutes."

Delta messed with her hair, smoothing it out after Gemma's forceful pull. "I was working on my car. I couldn't sleep, so I started messing around."

"We looked there." Clay stated.

"I was also in the shop." Delta said, raising her eyebrows in a challenge. She saw Clay back down immediately. "Sorry if I scared you. I've been here the entire time."

Clay nodded his head. "Good." He looked to Gemma. "I'll be in the Chapel. Somebody is going to pay for the torched pile of scrap outside." He slowly left the room, his shoes scuffing against the floor.

Gemma crossed her arms over her chest, watching her daughter walk towards the bed and shedding her jacket. "You're lying."

"Why would I lie?" Delta asked.

"Because, you fucked someone last night." Gemma said flatly, her bluntness not taking Delta by surprise. Her mother was always straight forward, even if it was something that could be said in a different way. She didn't sugar coat anything.

Delta rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Gemma let out a dark chuckle. "That hickey on your neck tells me everything." She closed the door to the dorm. "I don't need to see the bruises in between your legs to know that you slept with someone last night."

"And if I did?" Delta asked, finally looking up at her mother.

"You better hope we don't find out who it is." Gemma said. She watched as Delta started undressing for her shower, noticing the bite marks and various other hickeys covering her daughter's skin. "Did he go down on you?" She asked, finding a dark bite mark inside Delta's right thigh.

Delta pulled off her tank, turning to the bathroom in her bra and panties. "Twice."

Gemma grimaced. "That crosses off Tiggy. He's selfish when he's drunk."

"And, you know that how?" Delta asked with a smirk, crossing her arms over her chest.

Gemma chuckled. "He used to have a habit of having sex on the pool table. Every girl swallowed, none of them came." She started folding Delta's clothes. "You wouldn't sleep with the prospects. Bobby, Piney, and Chibs are like uncles to you. Jax is your brother. That leaves Juice, Happy, and Opie." She picked up Delta's phone, unplugging the headphones and wrapping the cord around them. "These aren't yours."

Delta shrugged. "They're new."

"If you keep lying, you're gonna be walking funny for more than just spreading your legs." Gemma threatened before tossing the headphones onto the bed. She walked over the bathroom doorway, smirking when Delta stood up straighter. "I'm guessing this isn't the first time you've been with this guy."

Delta sighed. "It's been a while. He told me he missed me last night."

Gemma tucked a strand of hair behind her daughter's ear. "Was he inside of you when he said that?"

"Was Dad inside you when you told him to kill John?" Delta challenged. She felt Gemma's anger before seeing it in her eyes. "I like this guy. I don't want you taking a knife to his dick just because he acted on his feelings."

"You're playing with fire, Delta." Gemma warned her. "You know the rules of the club, the code. You've always told Clay and I that you don't want to live by the club." She rubbed her thumb along the hickey on her daughter's neck. "You're being reckless."

Delta shook her head. "I felt in control for the first time last night since Hale showed up." She looked down at the floor for a moment before reaching her mother's eyes. "As for the codes, I'm not looking to become an old lady. He would never make me one anyway. He's a distraction that I can relate to."

Gemma chuckled. "That's what I thought when I met John. Three months later, I was pregnant with your brother." She stopped chuckling when she saw some of the light in Delta's eyes fade. "I know it hurts, baby."

"It never stops." Delta breathed before stepping inside the bathroom and wrapping her hand around the door with white knuckles. "I need to shower."

"Come to the office when you're done." Gemma breathed before kissing her forehead. "We're gonna make him pay."

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	9. Chapter 9

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Delta felt the eyes of the club members on her as she trotted into behind the bar, walking through to gather her things from the night before. She glanced up, catching Half-Sack staring at her openly instead of discreetly like the other boys. "See something you like, Half Sack?" He jumped, glancing around at the other club members who snickered at him. She saw Clay's glare directed towards him, his hand crushing his empty beer can. "Relax, Daddy." She leaned down and kissed his cheek before slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I'll be in the office with Mom today."

"I think she's got a trip planned for you two. Mentioned something about Opie tailing you two." Clay stated before looking over at Opie sitting on the pool table. "You up for that, Ope?"

"Why me?" Opie asked, eyebrows raised.

Delta chuckled. "Tiggy can't handle two Teller women for more than twenty minutes."

"Not when you gang up on me!" Tiggy defended himself. Delta laughed when he wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "I'll give you fifty bucks if you join my side of the arguments while we're with your mother."

Delta laughed harder, pushing herself out of his arms. "I'm not looking to die today."

Clay smiled and stood up, guiding his daughter towards the door. "Go before someone else says something stupid." He clapped Opie's shoulder. "Keep your eyes on her."

Delta smirked at him over her shoulder, slipping outside before Clay saw her. Opie nodded his head once. "It won't be a problem."

* * *

Gemma glanced in the rearview mirror, finding Opie trailing her car. She sighed before looking at her daughter, reclined back in the passenger seat with her black spiked boots propped up on the dash. She took a look at her bare thighs, the insides covered with makeup to cover the hickeys. Clearing her throat, she caught Delta's attention. "Yesterday, at the hospital, you were having a pretty hard time, weren't you?"

"Can we not talk about that, please?" Delta asked, continuing to stare out the window as they drove through Charming.

"Too bad. We're talking about it." Gemma retorted. She turned down the radio, allowing them to speak without hearing Johnny Cash sing Folsom Prison. "We never talked about what happened when the baby died. We didn't bring her up at all. We were all so focused on trying to find Hale; you were kind of left to cope by yourself. Obviously, that hasn't been working."

Delta crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm fine."

"Bullshit." Gemma spat. "You couldn't even look at your nephew for two minutes yesterday."

Delta bit the inside of her cheek. "She should be here. I loved her. I took care of myself for her. Wendy nearly killed him because she couldn't wait to shoot herself up." She took a moment to collect herself. "It isn't fair."

Gemma reached over, cupping the back of Delta's head. "I know, baby. It's hard to lose your own kid. It's heartbreaking. Makes you want to crawl into a hole and never come back out, curse God like we curse Satan. We could do all of that, but we can't bring them back."

Delta jerked her seat up when Gemma pulled off the main road, seeing the gates to the cemetery. "What are we doing?"

"We are visiting our kids." Gemma stated before hitting the lock button on her keys again.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Delta nearly shouted, trying to unlock the door from the inside. She slammed her body against the door, but it only made the car rock from side to side.

Gemma grabbed Delta's arm. "Knock it off. You need this." She fought her the entire way to the back end of the graveyard, stopping where she knew J.T., Thomas, and Delta's baby were buried. "If you run, I will have Opie bring you right back. So, don't get any ideas."

"I'm not getting out of the car." Delta stated, looking through the back window to see Opie on his bike by the entry to the cemetery. "I'm not doing this."

Gemma slapped Delta's cheek, hard enough to snap some sense into her, but not hard enough to leave a mark. "Listen to me Delta Morrow. You will do this, because, God help me, I don't want to see you go through life turning away from every little baby you see. You need to face this. She died. It hurts like hell, but it's a reality that you need to face in order to move forward. Now, get out of the damn car or I will be riding your ass like Opie did last night."

"I didn't sleep with Opie." Delta lied, faking slight confusion.

"Bullshit." Gemma spat before climbing out of the car. "You have until three to get out."

Delta closed her eyes and felt the familiar ache in her throat before she climbed out. She slammed the car door shut before walking around the car slowly. She was barely in reach of Gemma when she snatched her arm and dragged her over to the family plots. She read the first two. One of her brother's father, the founder of the club. Next, one of her big brother, a brother she never met. She dug her heels into the ground before Gemma tried to drag her to the third plot.

"Look at her." Gemma whispered, cupping Delta's cheek in her hand.

Delta finally looked down at the third headstone. It was small, but it stuck up from the ground. MAVERICK GEMMA MORROW was engraved across the top, below stating that Delta was her mother and Maverick was taken from the world before she even entered it. No birthdate, no date of death. Just the span of the pregnancy. An outline of a baby drawn on in the corner. "She shouldn't be here."

"I know, baby." Gemma breathed, wiping away a few stray tears that had fallen on her daughter's cheek. She wiped away a few of her own thinking of the two dead children that lay just six feet below them, one her son and the other her granddaughter. "Let's sit down."

Gemma tugged on her daughter's hand until they both sat on the grass in front of Maverick's headstone. She wrapped her arm around Delta, brushing back some of her hair. "I get what you're feeling. I was in the same place. It's always going to be hard, but, if you accept that it happened, it will get easier."

"When did it get easier for you?" Delta asked, resting her head on Gemma's shoulder.

"When you were born." Gemma stated. She rested her own head on Delta's. "When I was pregnant with you, I felt so guilty. I had lost Thomas, and two months later you were on your way. I felt like I was trying to replace him. Even after I gave birth, I loved you as an entire separate person, but I was scared it would feel different when I held you."

Delta glanced upwards towards her mother, not moving her head. "Did it?"

"In a good way. Once I held you, I knew that having you was not my replacing of Thomas, but you were the key to help me heal after Thomas. You were having heart problems, like all of us, but you were pulling through. Made the recovery out of the hospital just like Jax." Gemma smiled. "It still hurt to think of Thomas, but, after I had you, I always figured God took Thomas so I could have you."

"Really?" Delta asked.

Gemma nodded. "If Thomas had survived and made it to when you were born, I don't know what I would've done. You were a newborn. Thomas needed around the clock care." She kissed Delta's head. "I miss Thomas, a lot, but he was suffering. We were all suffering. There was a bigger plan going on, and it was painful. Although I'd like to have Thomas here, I wouldn't give up being your mother for anything."

Delta wiped away a few more tears. "So, I have to have a kid before I can start healing."

"No." Gemma chuckled through her own tears. "But, maybe Abel is your Delta. If Maverick was here now, we'd be dealing with more than just Hale trying to get into your pants again. If that was going on, who would be watching after Abel to make sure he's getting the care he needs so he can fight to live?"

"A life for a life." Delta whispered. She felt her lip trembling, trying to stop it as she spoke. "I'd give up mine if it meant Maverick could have one."

Gemma nodded. "I know that too." She let go of Delta when she pushed herself forward, laying down on the grass where Maverick's casket lay below. "What are you doing?"

Delta closed her eyes. "I just need this, Mom. This is as close as I'll ever get to her." She felt her heartbeat thumping in her ears as she lay there. Her eyes opened though when she heard Opie's bike driving over to them.

"We need to go. Hale's car is driving up." Opie stated.

"Are you shitting me?" Gemma asked before standing up. Delta stood up behind her, seeing Hale's car pull in the cemetery. "Stay behind me, baby."

Opie cut off the engine to his bike and swung his leg over. He looked at the two girls as Hale parked by them. "He's looking for an excuse. Don't give him one."

The engine to Hale's car suddenly stopped before he climbed out, standing with his sunglasses perched on his nose and a smirk gracing his lips. He rested his hands on his hips, walking around to the front of the patrol car. "Visiting the dead on a day like this? The weather is beautiful, why come to bring your moods down?"

"That's our business. You can go now, Hale." Gemma stated, pushing Delta further behind her.

"So hostile. I only came to talk, chat." Hale sat down on his hood. "Have you thought anymore of our deal, Delta?"

Opie stepped in the way of Hale's vision. "She's not interested."

Hale chuckled. "I'm assuming you're the new ride." He lifted his sunglasses up over his eyes, resting them on his head. "Delta, I didn't know you told our secrets to all the club members. Does Momma Gemma know?"

"Shut up, Hale." Delta gritted out.

"I bet she doesn't know everything." Hale grinned. "I bet you never mentioned a word about that weekend when I snuck up to that class trip you took. You told me you were so happy to be away from me. I surprised you, didn't I?"

Delta tried to step passed her mother, but Gemma held her in a firm grip. "Stop it."

Hale stood up, ignoring Opie's large figure in front of him, blocking his path. "Do you remember when we used my handcuffs? Your hands were nearly blue when we were finished."

"Okay, that's enough." Opie said, using his body to push Hale back.

"Why? Does it piss you off that I was inside of her? Does it tear you up to know that I claimed her in a way that you never will?" Hale badgered Opie.

Gemma grabbed the gun from her purse and pointed it at Hale, between the eyes. "If you don't get the fuck out of here, I will put a bullet into the skull of yours."

Hale smirked. "Is that a threat?"

"You bet your ass it is." Gemma gritted out.

Hale held up his hands, a small smile still on his face. "Alright, I'll catch you at a better time. Things are always tense at a cemetery." He looked around to Delta before his eyes landed on the headstones. The cocky attitude dropped as he read the third one. "Are you fucking serious?"

Delta stepped in front of the headstone. "Leave her alone, Hale."

"You were pregnant. . .with our daughter." Hale stated, his anger seeping into his voice.

Delta shook her head. "She was mine."

"I know how babies are made, Morrow." Hale spat before taking a step towards her. Opie grabbed his shirt, pulling him back. "Let go!"

"Get back in your car and drive away." Opie said calmly. "That baby is not yours."

Hale ripped himself from Opie's fists and marched back to his car, pointing at Delta. "You've done it now, Delta. If you thought last time was bad, this time will be hell."

"You touch me, and I can put you away." Delta said with a shake of her head. "She's in the system, Hale. One word and your DNA puts you behind bars."

Hale opened his car door. "Then, I guess I have to find a way to keep you away from the cops." He got into his car, slamming the door shut behind him, before peeling out of the cemetery.

Gemma looked back at Delta. "You put her DNA in the system."

"No, but he doesn't know that." Delta breathed. "Besides, she's still here and the hospital has her records. It just takes a few more phone calls to prove what he did."

Opie cleared his throat. "We should probably head back to the clubhouse and tell the club was happened. Hale just threatened to kill you."

"Opie's right. We need to get out of here." Gemma agreed before watching Delta walk around the car and get inside. She looked at Opie when he was walking towards his bike. "When did you start sleeping with her?"

"With who?" Opie asked, turning towards her.

"My daughter." Gemma smirked. "She didn't tell me. You're the only logical choice though."

Opie rolled his eyes. "Do you want the good answer or the bad one?"

Gemma cocked her head to the side. "How about the truth?"

". . .We first hooked up when my marriage was on a break, when I was on a break. Before Hale got to her." Opie shrugged his shoulders. "Donna wanted to give the marriage another shot, and I was told I owed it to my kids to at least try with their mother."

"And?" Gemma asked.

Opie pulled his helmet over his head. "I left Donna, didn't I?" He snapped it into place and stood next to his bike. "We only started seeing each other again a few months ago."

"You mean fucking her." Gemma corrected him.

Opie rolled his eyes. "That's not all we do, as much as I'd love to." His statement made Gemma laugh. "Are you going to rat me out?"

"If you hurt her, I'll hurt you." Gemma shrugged. "That's as simple as I can make it for you."

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	10. Chapter 10

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"He won't kill me." Delta said quietly as Gemma pulled onto the Teller-Morrow lot. "That would defeat his whole purpose for going after me. He wants one thing."

"I'm well aware of what he wants." Gemma replied before parking her car. She listened to Opie's bike as it pulled up to the railing. "I'm just afraid of what will be added to that list now that he's aware of what he almost had."

Delta looked down at her stomach before turning to her mother. "Do you really think he'll want a kid?"

Gemma shrugged. "You saw his face, and you know him better. You tell me." She saw Delta's eyes cloud over before she moved onto the other topic plaguing her mind. "Why didn't you tell me about Opie?"

"I was jailbait." Delta stated plainly. "He was married with two kids, and I was still in high school. Just starting high school actually. What was I supposed to say?"

"I don't know. How about 'hey Mom, I'm banging my brother's best friend'?" Gemma suggested. She sighed. "Sorry, I'm not trying to beat you up after everything that happened. Secrets are never good in this family. It only tears us apart in the end."

Delta dropped her head back against the seat. "I know." She looked out the window, watching Opie walk over to Clay and Jax. "And if I told you Opie and I were hooking up back then, Daddy would've kicked him out of the club when he went back to Donna. I'm not going to take the club away from him just for inviting me to his bed."

Gemma followed her daughter's gaze, smirking when she saw Opie. "What about now?"

"What do you mean?" Delta asked, turning to her mother.

Gemma shrugged. "Where do you want this relationship to go? Do you want it to be something more or do you want to be his pussy on the cold and lonely nights?"

"I don't know what I want." Delta confessed before climbing out of the car, surprised when Clay and Jax were standing by the car. "Fuck." She mumbled before Jax started lifting her arms and checking her neck. "I'm fine. He didn't touch me."

"Hey, she's telling the truth. Stop smothering her." Gemma said, climbing out of the driver's side. She pushed Jax slightly back, giving Delta some space to breathe. "Physically, she's fine. Opie didn't let him get within a ten foot radius of her."

Clay glanced between the two women. "Opie said he saw Maverick's plot."

Delta crossed her arms over her chest. "Yeah, he wasn't happy." She saw Jax clenching and unclenching his jaw rapidly. "He's always wanted what he thinks is rightfully his. I don't think he'll kill me. I know he won't. But knowing he almost had a kid, he might try for that again."

"Purposely get you pregnant?" Jax questioned.

Delta huffed out a breath. "If he gets to me, I think so." She looked over Jax's shoulder to find Opie staring at them, staring at her. "He has this sick idea that he's my shining prince meant to rescue me from this club. A kid would add to that fantasy."

"I want him dead, and I want him dead tonight." Jax demanded, looking up at his stepfather.

"I would love nothing more than that, but he's spending his nights worshipping ATF pussy." Clay gritted out. He looked at Delta. "Unless you think he'll stop things with her to focus on you."

Delta shook her head. "He's smarter than to try and kidnap SAMCRO's daughter with that hot mess in town. They'd be here, riding his ass, to get me back so the club doesn't go on a war path." She sighed, leaning against the car. "But, that doesn't mean he won't try to get to me. He didn't have to kidnap me before."

Gemma turned to Clay. "I want someone with her at all times. I want that to be their one job until this situation is handled, and I don't want a God damned prospect. I don't need their hands down their pants while she's taking a shower."

"Jax?" Clay said, the one word asking everything.

Jax shrugged. "I would, but I got Abel to worry about. I can't keep Hale from her in the hospital." He glanced back to the clubhouse, looking at the members who sat around the picnic table. "What about Ope? He did good today. He likes the one on one jobs."

"That would probably be the best option." Clay sighed, oblivious to the glare Gemma sent Delta's way. "Let's bring it up in the Chapel. Talk things through. I want to make sure he won't be pissed off about this. Babysitting duty is usually a prospect's job." He leaned over and kissed Gemma's cheek and Delta's forehead. "You stick with your mother and keep your gun handy."

Delta bit her lip as Clay and Jax walked away towards the clubhouse, looking at Gemma out of the corner of her eye. "Stop looking at me like that."

Gemma leaned against the car, her hip bumping into Delta's. "You are so lucky they have no clue." She watched the boys disappear into the clubhouse. "So, you don't know what you want?"

"No." Delta breathed. "I'm eighteen, barely started my life. Why would I want to tie myself down to a marriage? On the other hand, I want to rip the blonde extensions out of every crow eater that makes eyes at him. I want him, but I'm not sure I'm ready to be somebody's wife."

"You don't have to marry him now." Gemma smiled.

Delta rolled her eyes. "Have you looked at our family history? If I don't marry someone within the next two years, I'll break the family streak."

Gemma laughed, glad that her daughter was using humor to help her cope with the shit storm they were in. "Even if you marry someone, it doesn't mean your life ends. You can still do lots of things. It's once you have a kid that your world becomes dependent on one place and one person." She wrapped her arm around Delta. "There are conditions to him watching you though."

"Like what?" Delta asked.

"You can't have sex with him. He needs to be a high alert for Hale. If he's using his dick, he's not using his brain." Gemma stated before standing up. "But, I do want him with you twenty-four seven."

Delta began running her fingers through her hair, pulling it high into a ponytail. "I figured that." She pushed herself off the car, looking towards the playground where a mother, most likely waiting for her car to get fixed, played with her kids. "Are you going to tell Dad about Opie and I?"

"When you figure out what you want, I'll let you tell him." Gemma said with a nod of her head. "And, you will tell him."

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	11. Chapter 11

**Please review!**

Delta slid another file into the large cabinet in the corner when Clay walked in, his figure casting a large shadow into the office. Gemma looked up from the paperwork she was filling out, taking a moment to study her husband. "Well?"

"Opie won't see his kids for another few weeks. Until then, he said he'd have no problem keeping an eye on Delta." Clay said, his voice gruff as he sat down on the couch. He jutted his chin towards his daughter. "You okay with Opie?"

"I was okay with anyone besides Half-Sack." Delta smirked. She sat down in the chair across the desk from Gemma, pulling her knees up to her chest. "What if Hale decides he wants a kid? It won't just be me he's after."

Gemma took Delta's hand into her own and squeezed it. "He's not going to get the chance."

Clay nodded his head in agreement. "I won't let him hurt my baby girl again. Just be with someone at all times, guard up. We're going to get you out of this, darling." He straightened his kutte and sighed leaning into the cushions of the couch. "Can you get me a beer?"

"Yeah." Delta breathed before standing up and trotting out of the office. She was halfway to the clubhouse when two unmarked cars pulled into the lot, lights flashing on top of the roofs. She felt her heart drop to her stomach when she saw Hale and the Stahl chick sitting in one of the cars. The cars parked and the doors started opening when the boys started pouring out of the clubhouse. Before she could get behind them, a hand closed tightly around her arm. "Hey!"

The boys started barking and hollering as Delta was swung back against Stahl's tall stature. Stahl chuckled darkly before grabbing a fistful of Delta's hair, keeping her close. "Easy, boys. I'm not going to hurt her."

"Hey!" Clay shouted as he and Gemma hurried over. They both froze when Hale pulled out his gun and pointed it at them, earning another round of protests from the gang of bikers. Delta struggled against Stahl's hold. "What the hell is going on?"

"Three dead bodies just showed up in Charming. SAMCRO trademark was all over them. We have a few questions." Hale said, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

Jax stepped forward, his hands slightly above his head. "We didn't kill anybody. Do you really think we'd mark people if we killed them?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing. "That's just stupid. Obviously, someone is trying to set us up, poorly. Can you let go of my sister now?"

Stahl smiled again, her free hand using her gun to point it at Delta's head. Delta struggled against her lock harder. Clay started yelling louder. "Take that fucking gun away from my daughter's head."

They all heard a gun cock, but it wasn't Stahl's. "Move the gun, Stahl. You've gone far enough." Hale's voice rang out, his gun now pointed at her.

"Are you serious?" She asked, scoffing as she looked over her shoulder at him. She put her gun back in its holster before shoving Delta away from her. Jax grabbed her, keeping her from running into the iron fence. "You're defending them now."

Delta stood up, straightening herself out. "Calm down. He'll make it up to you later."

Stahl's eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

"I'm sure he'll say he's sorry with his tongue. I should know. He used to do that to me." Delta shrugged before Jax gripped her arm, silently telling her to shut up. "Does he still whistle after he's done?"

"Delta!" Hale shouted.

Delta cocked an eyebrow at him. "What? Did I say too much?"

Jax moved her behind him and looked at Opie. "Handle her." He whispered, watching as Opie wrapped an arm around his sister's waist and held her close to him. He turned back to Stahl and Hale. "We don't know anything about those bodies. You'd have better luck looking elsewhere."

Clay rested his hand on the small of Gemma's back, walking with her towards the rest of the club, keeping her away from Hale and Stahl. He smirked when he saw Stahl's eye twitching. "I think it's time to say goodbye." He stood next to Jax while Gemma hurried back to Delta, taking Opie's position. "You be keeping away from my daughter now, Hale. She's not interested."

Stahl's jaw visibly moved as she gritted her teeth. She looked back to Hale. "Get in the fucking car."

They all started loading back up, leaving as quickly as they arrived. When both cars left the lot, Clay yelled for Half-Sack to close and lock the gate. Gemma sat at the picnic table with Delta, examining her scalp where Stahl had yanked. "What did we tell you about her? Stay under the radar. Now, you've got Hale and Stahl pissed at you."

"She deserved it." Delta stated before wincing when Gemma found a cut, blood tangling in Delta's hair. "Jesus."

"She didn't hold back." Gemma nodded her head. She wiped her hands off and cupped Delta's face in her hands as the boys started spreading out towards their bikes or back into the clubhouse. "Are you okay otherwise?"

Delta nodded once. "I'm fine." She smiled when Gemma kissed her forehead, pulling her close as Clay, Jax, and Opie walked over.

Gemma looked up at Clay. "He needs to go, Clay."

"Well, now Stahl knows we've got motive against him thanks to the princess's outburst." Jax scoffed, gesturing towards his younger sister.

"Fuck you!" Delta spat as she kicked her leg at him, hitting his thigh. "I got them out of here, didn't I? One word that Hale wasn't her one and only and she turned from an agent into a sniffling slut."

Clay held up his hands, stopping the sibling fight. "We already had motive to kill Hale with the badge on his hip. Stahl probably thinks the relationship was consensual since Hale is still alive to torture you about it. I don't think the tables have changed all that much."

Gemma held Delta tighter, bringing her head to rest against her shoulder. "How soon can we hit him?"

"ATF is still an issue. I don't know how long they'll be here. With the bodies piling up in Charming, they'll probably be staying longer." Clay sighed before noticing Delta's eyes getting heavier with every blink. "You okay, darling?"

"Just tired. It's been an eventful day." Delta breathed with a yawn. "I don't know how much more of him I can take."

Gemma kissed Delta's head. "It's going to affect her heart, baby. If we don't take care of him, he may just take care of her." She shook her head, stroking Delta's hair. "I'm not losing another kid, Clay."

"We're not losing nobody." Clay stated, trying not to think about the defect his daughter was living with. He closed his eyes behind his sunglasses. "We need to play this smart. Opie, take her home, get some food in her, and make sure she gets into bed. She hasn't slept for more than three hours in a week. I'll update you on what's going on when I get home."

Opie nodded his head. "I can do that."

"I think I'll head up with them, baby. Get some stuff done around the house." Gemma stated before Clay and Jax disappeared into the clubhouse.

"Okay, baby." Clay smirked before kissing her cheek.

When they were inside, Delta looked up at her mother. "Really? You don't trust us for a few hours."

"No, I don't. You need to get your sleep, if not for you then at least your heart." Gemma said, standing up with her. She patted Opie's chest as she looked at her daughter. "Besides, if you're anything like your momma, you'd use every one of those hours for anything other than sleeping."

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	12. Chapter 12

**Please review!**

Delta winced as she dried her hair with her towel, her scalp still sore from Stahl's grip on her hair. She sat down on her bed when Opie walked into her room. He had his hands shoved in his pockets, and he looked like he was in a place he shouldn't be. "You can relax, Ope."

"Not when your mother knows I'm in your room and what I want to do." Opie sighed. He looked around the room, seeing the pictures of members and family nearly stacked on top of each other on her dresser. He turned back to Delta, seeing blood smear onto her towel. "Jesus, she did a number on you." He walked over to her and pressed the towel to the back of her head where the blood was. "So much for your shower."

"That was more for my mental cleansing." Delta breathed before smiling up at him. "So, babysitting duty, huh?"

Opie rolled his eyes as he applied pressure to the back of her head. "I didn't want the prospects watching you, and the other guys hate watching you and Gemma. They love you, but it's not the fun job."

Delta chuckled. "And, you?"

"Let's just say this. My answer would've been different if I was asked to watch Gemma." Opie smirked before pulling the towel away, satisfied that she had stopped bleeding. He folded over the towel, hiding the blood stains now covering it. He looked down at his hands. "You never told me about Hale."

Delta stroked his cheek, making him look her in the eyes. "It happened right after Donna came back, saying you two needed to work things out for the kids." She ran her thumb over the scar just under his eye, small enough that not many people even knew it was there. "You backed out of the club, wanted to give Donna the chance she wanted. I respected that. She was your wife. By the time you and Donna ended for real, I had already lost the baby."

"What happened?" Opie asked, his eyebrows furrowing together. "With the baby."

Delta took his hand between hers, playing with his fingers. "I miscarried about sixteen weeks in. I was here, at home. Clay was up here showering. Gemma had just gotten back from the office. I started having sharp pains in my stomach. It got so bad; I nearly passed out." She looked up at Opie, peering at him under her eyelashes. "She was gone by the time we got to the hospital."

Opie cupped her face in his hand, his fingers tangling in her hair as he pulled her slightly closer. "That sounds horrible. I couldn't imagine losing one of my kids."

"It's unbearable." Delta whispered. She leaned up and pecked his lips. "Don't imagine it."

Opie exhaled before noticing how dull her eyes looked. There were dark bags under her eyes, her eyelashes heavy over her eyes. "You really haven't been sleeping much, have you?"

"Last night was better." Delta admitted, running a hand through her hair. "I always slept better next to you."

"How much sleep have you had this past week? I want at least double digits." Opie stated, standing up and grabbing the blanket on her bed.

"Counting Sunday. . .eleven." Delta said, standing up as well. She frowned when Opie pushed her back on the bed and laid the blanket over her. "C'mon, it's four o'clock. I'll be fine until tonight."

Opie shook his head, sitting down on the bed next to her and leaning against her headboard. He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her to his chest. "You're body needs sleep, Delta." He reached over and grabbed her TV remote, turning it on and lowering the volume before squeezing her slightly. "Go to sleep, darlin'."

* * *

Gemma walked up the stairs with a basket of laundry in her hands. Pausing at the top of the stairs seeing her daughter's bedroom door closed, she slowly walked over and knocked on it. When she didn't hear anything, she opened the door.

Inside, she found Opie sitting on the bed with Delta curled up against his side, a blanket covering her body. The TV was down low, barely audible even as she stood in the room. Both were fully clothed, fast asleep. That was until Gemma cleared her throat. Opie's eyes fluttered open before he saw her. His arm around her daughter tightened the slightest before relaxing, finding that Gemma was in the room instead of a stranger.

"You're supposed to be watching her, not sleeping on the job." Gemma whispered, setting down the laundry basket and pulling out some of Delta's clean clothes.

Opie glanced down at her. "I dozed off. Nothing is going to happen to her while I'm around." He said, trying to reassure her.

"Does that include you?" Gemma asked, her eyebrows raising.

"What's your problem with me being with Delta?" Opie asked, a frown forming on his face. "Besides her wanting me out of this club, I was great to Donna."

Gemma crossed her arms over her chest. "Clay and I wanted better things for her. Better things than this club. It's our family, but you know the life. We don't want that for her." She watched her daughter's chest for a moment, calming slightly when she saw it rise and fall steadily. "She's going to make the choices she wants, but I don't want her making a choice that is going to reject her."

Opie sighed. "What are you talking about?"

"What exactly do you want with my daughter?" Gemma asked. "If you're just fucking her to fuck her, find a crow eater. I want to know if you want more."

"Gem-" Opie started, but was cut off by Gemma.

"If you don't want anything from her, let her go." Gemma pleaded.

Opie dropped his head back against the wall, keeping his eyes on Gemma. "Gem, I wanted to stay with her the first time we started. She's the one who told me to go back and try things with Donna for the kids." He smirked, running a hand down his face. "I even asked her to marry me. She turned me down."

Gemma's eyes widened. "You asked her to marry you when she was fifteen."

"Yeah." Opie nodded. "I had everything. The club, an adoring wife, two young kids, a house. I just wanted to stay with her." He smirked. "My feelings haven't changed."

Gemma sat down on the edge of the bed, next to Opie's feet. "So. . .she told you about Hale."

Opie nodded again. "She told me enough. She wouldn't even say Maverick's name until today. She finally told me what happened the day she miscarried." He shook his head. "I knew she'd been pregnant for a while, but I didn't think it'd been that long."

"I didn't really show until week twenty with all of my pregnancies. Nobody really knew she was pregnant outside of the club." Gemma breathed before tearing up herself. "We had found out a few weeks before that she was having a girl. We cleared out Jax's room. Clay even primed it, bought a crib." She brushed back some of Delta's hair, careful not to disturb her. "I was just starting to make dinner. The boys had just come back from a run. Delta was doing homework at the kitchen table. We were talking about some bitch that was at her school. One second, we were laughing. The next. . .she's doubled over, clutching her stomach."

Gemma looked down at her hands. "I nearly broke the windows screaming for Clay to get his ass downstairs and take us to the hospital. She couldn't even walk; she was in so much pain. I knew she had lost the baby, but I didn't want to admit that to her or to myself." She exhaled sharply, a slight release from the emotion that came from recalling that day. "When the doctor told Delta she had lost the baby, her heart skyrocketed. She was having troubles breathing. She was clinging to Clay and I. The doctors couldn't get her to settle down."

"What did they do?" Opie asked.

"They had to sedate her." Gemma whispered. "It was the only way to bring her heart rate down. She was unconscious when they removed the baby. If she was awake for that, I think it would've killed her."

Opie held Delta tighter against him. "She was in the hospital for two weeks."

"The sedative wore off. She remembered what happened. Almost had a heart attack. Doctors thought they were going to have to operate." Gemma stated. "When they removed Maverick, we kept her remains for the burial. We wanted Delta to be there." She closed her eyes. "Delta couldn't accept that Maverick was dead until the doctor brought in her remains inside this tiny little cooler, one you'd put your fucking lunch in."

"That calmed her heart?" Opie asked, wide eyed.

Gemma shrugged. "It was a slap of reality. A dark, horrifying reality. She was denying herself the truth, and her heart was suffering because of it." She rested her hand on Delta's leg, rubbing her thumb back and forth over the skin. "She doesn't need another heartbreak, Opie. That's why I want you to let her go if you're just using her."

Opie shook his head. "I'm not. I'd never choose to use a girl, let alone Delta."

"Then, what's stopping you? Why are we only hearing of this now?" Gemma asked.

"Well, you've already threatened me three times today. Clay would castrate me for just touching her." Opie said, a slight sarcasm to his words. "To be completely honest, Delta wants to keep it quiet. She's not ready for that kind of commitment, and I'm not looking to rush into anything. I know she's the girl I want. If I have to wait a while, I can do that, as long as there aren't guys parading through."

Gemma rolled her eyes and stood up, grabbing the laundry basket again and resting it against her hip. "She wants you, Ope. She's just afraid that a relationship means that she's trapped. Remind her what this life is, you'll never see another guy get her attention."

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	13. Chapter 13

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Opie opened his eyes when he heard the shower turn on. He reached out beside him, feeling only the warmth on the sheets from where Delta was when he last dozed off. He glanced at the clock on her nightstand, 3:36. Standing up, he hurried into the bathroom to find Delta curled up in a ball under the water with her arms wrapped around herself. Her face was pressed against her knees, and she was soaked through her sweatshirt. "Delta!" He squatted down next to the tub, reaching in a barely touching her leg when she jumped. That's when he noticed the tip of her nose was red and her eyes were puffy. "Delta, baby, it's just me."

"I'm sorry." Delta sobbed, seeing the hurt flash across Opie's face. She shook her head, closing her eyes. "I can't get him out of my head."

"What can I do? What do you need?" Opie asked. He teared up slightly seeing her so afraid of her thoughts. He couldn't imagine what she was like when it was actually happening. "Name it."

Delta's lip trembled. "I need my mom."

"Okay." Opie pressed his lips to her forehead and caressed her cheek, his hand now dripping with water. "I'll be right back." He nearly stumbled out of her bathroom before jogging to Clay and Gemma's bedroom door. He knocked twice on the door and sighed when he heard Clay groan from inside. He knocked again.

A moment later, Clay was standing in the doorway, holding the door wide open to show a groggy Gemma sitting up in bed. "It's three in the morning. What's wrong?" He asked, rubbing his eyes.

"It's Delta." Opie stated. He looked over at Gemma. "She's not doing good. She wants you."

"Define not good." Gemma said, standing up and hurrying over to the door. She was clad in black yoga pants and a tank top. She ducked under Clay's arm that was still holding the door in a death lock.

Opie scratched the back of his head. "We're at a meltdown, Gem."

"Shit." Gemma breathed before breezing passed him into her daughter's room. She was out a moment later. "Get me a couple towels."

Clay went down the hallway to the linen closet while Gemma retreated back into the bedroom. Opie watched her disappear into the bathroom, the silence hitting him only for a moment when the water was turned off, before he heard Delta sobbing again.

* * *

"Sweetie, you're going to get sick if we don't get you into something else." Gemma said, turning off the water. She leaned against the edge of the tub and began pulling at the sleeves of Delta's soaked sweatshirt. She felt her chest tighten painfully when Delta started sobbing, almost a cry for help.

She turned around when she heard Clay's footsteps approaching the door. He stood in the doorway, his arm stretched out with two towels in hand. He cleared his throat. "What else can I get?"

"The thick blue quilt from my closet." Gemma whispered before setting the towels down on the floor beside her. She stood up and followed him out of the room, grabbing a spare set of her daughter's clothes and returning to the bathroom. "Darlin', what happened?"

Delta stuttered, her body shivering now covered in cold, damp clothes. "Flashback. In the woods." Her body jerked as she sobbed again. "I fought so hard, Mom. He dragged me through the dirt." Her body shook harder. "I ran away and hid for what felt like hours. But, he found me." She squeezed her eyes shut. "He always finds me, Mom."

Gemma swiped at her eyes, attempting to dry them before Delta saw. She heard a thump behind her and felt the air shift before the door closed. The blue quilt sat on the floor by the door. Leaning over and locking it, she turned back to Delta. "You never told me that before."

"I didn't want to remember." Delta whispered. She bit her lip when Gemma started pulling the sweatshirt over her head. She tried to hold back the sobs that were caught in her throat, but she quickly lost the battle when Gemma removed the rest of her drenched clothing and began drying her off with the towels.

Gemma tried to dry her off quickly and carefully, biting back her own emotions as she helped Delta put on the clothes she had grabbed from the bedroom. "Step out of the tub, baby."

As soon as Delta was standing outside the tub, both she and Gemma collapsed to the floor and onto the big blue quilt. Gemma quickly wrapped the blanket around them and held Delta against her, her sobs muffled into her shoulder. She kissed Delta's head and stroked her damp hair. "I'm so sorry, baby. I'm so, so sorry. I should've seen it sooner." She felt more tears fall down her face, slipping into Delta's hair. "I promise. Everything is going to get better. I'm not going to let him get you."

"I'm ruined. You should've let the doctors let me die with Maverick." Delta sobbed, clinging to Gemma. "No one would have to deal with this."

"Hey, look at me." Gemma breathed, bringing her daughter's face up from her shoulder. She felt more hot tears slip down her cheeks, now creating dark circles where they fell on the blanket. "You are not ruined. It may not feel like it now, but you are stronger." She pressed her forehead to Delta's. "So, don't ever tell me to just let you die, because I will never let that happen. I don't care if Hale raped you a hundred times. You are mine. I'm not going to let anything ruin that."

* * *

Opie closed his eyes, dropping his head to the wall behind him when he could hear Delta's cries even through two walls that separated them. He had his feet pressed up against the opposite wall of the hallway, his shoes mere inches from Clay's sock covered feet. "She didn't want me to help her, Clay."

"It wasn't you." Clay grunted. He ran a hand down his face, moisture gathering in his palm. "A man violated her. Even though she loves and trusts us, we're still two guys." He huffed out a breath, trying to cover up the small sniffle. "Gemma is her mother, has always been the nurturer for her. It's not that she doesn't want our help; we just can't help her."

Opie glanced over at the older man, seeing the small hint of moisture under his eyes. He had never seen the club President cry before, and it was unsettling to see the rock of the club so broken up. "This has happened before, hasn't it?"

Clay nodded, his face still pointing down towards the floor. "First time it happened, Gem was up visiting her dad. I woke up to hear her screaming and thrashing in her bed. I got her to calm down, but she wouldn't tell me what was wrong. She gave me plenty of reasons, but I knew she was lying." He shook his head. "I should've pushed her harder. I could've saved her a world of hurt."

"When did you find out?" Opie asked, his eyes locked and his untied shoelace.

"Two months later. I told Gem about the night when she got back, but we chalked it up to stress when it didn't happen again." Clay rambled. "Then, we heard her throwing up early one morning. We kept her home from school. We thought it was the flu. When she was the same three days later, we told her we were taking her to the doctor's." He shook his head, gulping down a breath of oxygen as if he had just run a marathon. "She sounded like a zombie, telling us that she was pregnant with Hale's baby. We asked why she was sleeping with him. When she said that she didn't choose it, we were right on the war path. We didn't even ask why he started it up. We didn't know it had been going on for months. We didn't really know anything until he showed back up here in Charming. But, she had nights like this often. I know it sounds selfish. As much as she loved that baby, as much as I loved that baby, it was a lot easier for her to forget Hale once Maverick was buried."

"I didn't even know it was going on. I left the club when it started, came back a couple months after she lost Maverick." Opie sniffled, not bothering to cover it up. "It kills me. To see her this way. It makes me want to die."

"Or kill the person causing the pain." Clay added. He closed his eyes for a moment, dropping his own head back against the wall behind him. "You sound like a man in love, Ope. Are you in love with my daughter?"

"Have been for years." Opie admitted, not even pausing to think over his words. "I'd die if it meant she never had to feel this pain again."

Clay nodded, humming his agreement. "And, Delta?"

Opie shrugged. "She loves me. I know that. It's commitment. It's like dancing around a gun. She won't leave me, but she'll push my buttons enough to avoid the topic." He shook his head. "I loved her before it was legal to love her, but that doesn't matter right now. What are we going to do about Hale?"

"We're going to kill him." Clay nodded his head. "We'll make him disappear from the face of this Earth."

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	14. Chapter 14

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"Hey, baby, wake up."

Gemma's eyes fluttered open to find Clay bent over above her. She smiled up at him, blowing a kiss up towards his face. "Good morning."

"Morning, you're in a good mood for spending the night on our daughter's bathroom floor." Clay commented, gesturing to the blue quilt that nearly took up the bathroom. "I'm heading over to TM. Opie is downstairs. How is she doing?"

Gemma sighed before stroking Delta's hair. "I don't know. She cried herself to sleep." She looked back up at Clay, caressing his cheek. "Stick around the shop until we get there. I'm sure she'll want to see you."

"I know the drill." Clay sighed before turning to leave. He caught himself in the doorway, looking back at his wife. "Opie's beating himself up because Delta wanted your help instead of his. He's in love with our daughter."

Gemma nodded. "Found out yesterday when she woke up with a hickey on her neck. And, numerous other places." She grinned when Clay grimaced and walked away. "Love you." She turned back to look at her daughter, gently caressing her cheek with her finger. "Delta, baby, we gotta get up." She smiled gently when Delta curled herself farther into her, trying to block her face. "It was cute when you were a baby, but, now. . .Well, it's kind of cute now too, but it's not going to work. Darlin', we can't continue to lay on the bathroom floor."

Delta groaned again. "I almost forgot about that." She mumbled. Her eyes opened, peering up at Gemma. "I'm freaking out, Mom."

"I can tell." Gemma nodded. She stroked Delta's hair, letting her fingers tangle into the strands. "You never mentioned the woods before. What happened?"

"I can't tell you." Delta breathed. She saw Gemma about to protest but continued before she could say anything. "I have to show you."

* * *

Delta wrapped her arms around herself as she wandered through the house to the kitchen. After making arrangements with Gemma, she had changed quickly, leaving her mother to shower and get ready for the day. When she saw Opie sitting at the kitchen table, she walked up behind him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed his head. "Hey."

"Hey." Opie greeted her, his hands coming up to squeeze her arms. He didn't make a move to look at her, content feeling her behind him. "How are you feeling?"

"Better." Delta nodded. She walked around him, slipping onto his lap and holding him close to her. "I'm sorry about last night. I haven't had a flashback in a few years. I didn't think they would come back. I didn't want you to see that."

Opie shook his head. "You don't need to apologize. I'm just sorry I couldn't help you through it."

"You helped me the only way you could. You got my mom for me." Delta whispered. She pressed her lips against his temple. "It's hard to explain. I feel safe with you. I know you would never hurt or harm me. I just. . .sometimes a girl needs her mom. Having a flashback is one of those times. You didn't know, baby. Don't beat yourself up."

Opie shrugged his shoulders. "I should be able to do something other than knock on your parents' bedroom door."

Delta smiled gently, pressed her face against the side of his. "This right now is helping me. You're still here. I didn't scare you off. I know it isn't easy. But, you're doing more than you give yourself credit for." She felt a weight lift from her chest when she felt his arms tighten around her. "Have you showered yet?"

"No, why?" Opie asked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

Delta sighed. "You probably should. I have to take you somewhere."

* * *

Delta exhaled sharply when Gemma parked her car in the grass clearing in the middle of the trees. Clay, Jax, and Opie pulled up alongside of them on their bikes. Gemma reached over and took Delta's hand into hers. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"No," Delta breathed, her eyes tearing up looking at the trees in front of her, "but, I need to." She blinked a couple times before scrambling out of the car, hoping that if she moved a little faster it would make this less intense. She gulped hard when she caught Clay's face. He already knew.

"Sis, what are we doing here?" Jax asked, striding over to her from his bike. He frowned when Delta seemed transfixed on the trees in front of her. He looked forward. There were nothing but trees and bushes, but he felt an uneasiness wash over him. "What is this place?"

Delta spoke before even thinking about his question. "Hell." She took a shaky breath before she felt Gemma wrap herself around her from behind, one arm hugging her shoulders. Delta brought her hands up and squeezed Gemma's arm, hugging it to herself. "A couple days after Hale had me blow him in his office, he came to the school. He told the principal he wanted to question me about Sons business." She held Gemma's arm tighter when she saw the three men beside her visibly turn killer out of the corner of her eye. "He drove us out here. . .and raped me in the backseat."

"Jesus Christ." Jax breathed, covering his mouth with his shaking hand. Tears began welling in his eyes.

"He left the car to piss. I ran into the woods, back there somewhere." Delta continued, staring back at the dozens of trees and bushes, still wondering to this day how what happened actually happened. "I hid for what felt like hours, but Hale found me. He dragged me through the dirt back to the car. When I tried to run again, he pushed me down and tied me to a tree. He didn't stop until the sun went down. I couldn't tell you how many times though." She felt Gemma press her face into her hair, kissing just below her ear. "He dropped me back off at the school. I got home just as you guys were coming back from your birthday party."

Clay wiped at his eyes. "I remember. You said you went over to a friend's to work on a school project due the next day." He sucked in a deep breath. "You didn't get home until midnight."

Delta nodded, a tear slipping down her cheek hearing how pained his voice sounded. "I said a lot of things back then that weren't true."

Gemma reached upward, wiping her daughter's cheeks. "Show us, baby."

Jax saw Delta nearly retract into herself. He reached out, taking her hand into his and stepping towards the trees. "He can't hurt you anymore, Delta. We're all here. This place can't hurt you."

"Go ahead. We're right behind you." Gemma whispered, unraveling her arms from around her.

Delta gripped onto Jax's hand, afraid that her trembling would even shake Jax's arm. She let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding when Jax wrapped his arm around her waist, walking with her between the trees. It didn't take her long to find the tree Hale had tied her too. It wasn't very old, but the bark was indented and chipped where the rope had cut into it during her struggle. "This is it."

She looked at the ground, remembering exactly where Hale would sit between rounds, remembering how the bark dug into her bag, and how she was completely powerless to stop what happened here in the dirt between the bushes. She ran her finger over the indent, some of it smooth from the rope burn. "He tied me up here."

She wrapped her arms around herself, stepping away from Jax. He glanced at her, but she couldn't meet his eyes. She watched as Clay, Gemma, and Jax all stood and stared at the spot, looking as if they were seeing the rapes for themselves. Glancing over her shoulder, she could see Opie standing helplessly. He looked completely lost, and she knew that this was as hard for her as it was for him. He wanted to marry her before all this happened, and he left the club right before this shit hit the fan.

Opie met her eyes, and she couldn't deny the pull. She walked over to him, sighing in relief when his arms wrapped around her, his large hand cupping the back of her head as she tried to bury herself against his body. It felt like he was trying to wrap his entire body around her and shield her from her past. She closed her eyes when she felt his lips press against the top of her head. "Take me away, Ope."

Opie held her tighter and looked over at Clay and Gemma, ignoring the sideways look from Jax. "Get her out of here." Clay nodded his head.

It only took a second to lift Delta up in his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist, before walking to his bike. Delta clung to him, ducking her head into the crook of his neck to avoid looking back at the trees. Opie didn't even let her get down before he climbed onto the bike, letting her sit facing him on the leather beneath him. After strapping helmets on both of them, he turned the key in his bike. "Hold on tight." He reminded her before taking off, getting the hell out of there as fast as possible.

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	15. Chapter 15

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Delta opened her eyes when Opie cut off the engine to his bike. Her nose was still buried in his neck, but she could see the end of her driveway behind them. His arms wound back around her, holding her tighter against his body. She moved her head, pressing her forehead to his and meeting his eyes. Her chest ached seeing the dried tears that stained his cheeks. "I'm here, Ope. I'm not going anywhere."

"I should've been here before." Opie whispered. "I wanted to stay with you. I knew in my gut. . .I could've protected you."

Delta shook her head. "Babe, I went to great lengths to keep what was happening a secret." She cupped his face in her hands. "I'm the one who told you to go. I wasn't ready for what you wanted. Even if you had stayed, Hale had his own agenda. I never saw it coming." She pressed herself against him harder. "I'm the one who told you to go. Okay? That isn't your fault."

"What about now?" Opie asked.

"What about now what?" Delta asked, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

Opie dropped his hands to her thighs, still resting on top of his. "I want to protect you, not just for the club. You know how I feel about you. It hasn't changed since before this shit storm. What about you?"

Delta bit her lip, her fingers wrapping around the edges of his kutte. "I don't want to be with anyone else."

"Then, marry me." Opie concluded.

Delta smiled. "After all that, you still want to marry me."

"I want to make you mine in every single way possible. Having you as my wife will show that." Opie breathed out. "I talked to Gemma, and. . .if you think married life with me is going to be boring, you're sorely mistaken." He smiled when Delta let out a chuckle, some of the tension leaving her body. "You know this life. You know me. If you want to drive to New York City just to spit on the sidewalk in Times Square, I will take you there."

Delta let out a laugh, one that let most of her worries subside. "Like you could be patient enough to drive through those streets." She bit her lip, pressing her forehead back against his. "I want to be yours."

Opie smiled, his hands moving from her thighs. "Then, could you please say you'll marry me and wear this God damn ring I bought you three years ago?" His hands moved between them, his fingers holding a square diamond ring surrounded by several smaller diamonds.

Delta grinned looking down at the ring. His eyes were sparkling, brighter than she had seen them in a long time. She leaned forward, kissing him hard, and cupped his face in her hands. When she pulled back, she could feel his heavy breathing on her lips. "Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes, I will marry you, Opie Winston." Delta smiled. She laughed hard when Opie stood up off the bike, with her still clinging to him, and pumped his fist in the air. Delta dropped her legs to the ground, finding her footing before Opie slid the ring onto her finger. "I love you."

"I love you too." Opie smiled before kissing her again.

Delta moaned softly, pushing her hips against his. "Take me inside."

* * *

Gemma dropped her purse onto the counter as Clay and Jax walked in behind her. She leaned heavily against the cabinets, staring down at the sink below her. She glanced over at Jax who was still standing by the back door. "Can you go check on your sister?"

"Yeah." Jax breathed before jogging out of the room towards the stairs.

Clay leaned back against the counter, his arm brushing against Gemma's. He crossed her arms over his chest, heaving out a breath. "We were both drunk the night she came home from those woods, Gem. Hale could've been holding a gun to her head, and we wouldn't have seen it."

Gemma wiped the tears away from her cheeks. "I know. We should've seen it, Clay. Our baby was raped repeatedly for hours, and we passed her on our way to fuck. We were actually mad at her for missing Jax's party." She sucked in a breath. "We're lucky we didn't lose her. We're lucky her heart didn't give out in those hours she was tied to that fucking tree. I want Hale handled, and I wanted him handled now."

"JESUS CHRIST!" Jax yelled out from upstairs. He came barreling down the stairs and into the kitchen, pointing back towards the way he came. "Does someone want to explain to me why Ope is in bed with my baby sister?"

"What?!" Clay's voice boomed as he pushed himself off the counter.

They heard more feet down the stairs. A moment later, Delta, in a sports bra and shorts, and Opie, in his boxers, hurried into the kitchen. Both were panting and red in the face, from their antics upstairs or embarrassment of being caught, no one wanted to guess. "Jax, we can explain."

"Explain, please! Because, I just got back from the woods you took us to where you told us how you were raped, and, when I go to check on you, YOU ARE FUCKING MY BEST FRIEND!" Jax screamed at her.

"I WAS FUCKING MY FIANCE!" Delta screamed back. She shoved at Jax's shoulders before Opie wrapped his arm around her waist to pull her back. "I'm well aware of where I took you. I lived it. I lived it for eight hours. When we got back, I finally decided what I wanted. And, fuck you. You slept with tons of my friends just to say you owned them. I actually love Opie."

Jax rolled his jaw, his fingers tightening into fists. Opie pulled Delta behind him and held up his hands. "If you're going to get mad, get mad at me. I made the first move. I'm the one who was waiting for her for three years."

"Three years?" Clay asked, his eyes widening. "She was fifteen."

Opie nodded. "I asked her to marry me then too. She turned me down and told me to try and work things out with Donna. I tried for my kids, but I was still in love with Delta. When Jax told me about the Hale situation, I divorced Donna and rejoined the club to make sure she was safe." He looked between Clay and Gemma. "I even tried to kill Hale, but I didn't know he had already moved out of his house when I torched it."

"That was you." Gemma smirked. She noticed Clay and Jax still staring daggers at Opie. "Would you two relax? He's making an honest woman out of your daughter, your sister. He's loved her and waited for her, and he's the least whoreish out of all of the boys in the club, including the two of you." She looked back at Delta, her hand resting on Opie's hip. She smiled seeing the rock that now adorned her finger. "You had a ring already."

"Like I said, I've waited three years. It took her all that time to finally decide to put it on her finger." Opie smirked. He wrapped his arm behind him, pulling Delta back in front of him and holding her to his chest. "We were celebrating our engagement."

Gemma grinned and cupped Delta's face in her hands. "I'm so happy for you." She leaned in, but pulled back a second later. "Where has your mouth been?"

"In places only for a lady." Delta chuckled.

Gemma smiled and pecked Delta's lips, pulling her into a bone crushing hug. "Please, tell me you are planning on kids."

"Ma!" Jax scolded her.

"I'd like to have some time with my wife before we talk about having kids. I've already got two." Opie chuckled, catching Delta's smile. He scratched the back of his head. "I'm going to get some clothes on. Let you guys have a family moment." He kissed the top of Delta's head before walking out of the room.

Delta looked over at her dad, seeing him go through a thousand different emotions and reactions all at once. "Daddy?" She smiled gently when his eyes met hers, his face softening. "He makes me really happy."

"C'mere." Clay mumbled. He held out his arms, welcoming her embrace as he wrapped his arms around her small frame. "I just. . .I never wanted this life for you. It's dangerous. It's hard enough watching Jax put himself on the line. I don't know if I could see you be put through the ringer."

Delta laid her head against his chest. "Unless someone tries to kill me, I don't think things could get worse than what I've already been through." She pulled back and cupped his face in her hands. "I've got biker blood in my veins. No matter what I do, Sons will be my home."

Jax cleared his throat behind her. "Why Opie? You could've been with anybody in the club. Why did you pick Opie?"

"I didn't. He picked me." Delta stated, looking back at him. "You know better than anybody that we can't choose who we fall in love with."

Jax nodded, his eyes glancing down at the ring on her finger. "He really makes you happy?"

Delta smiled softly. "Yes." She grinned when Jax rolled his eyes and pulled her into a hug. "It almost kills you, doesn't it?"

"I just saw my little sister having sex. You're lucky I didn't keel over from a stroke." Jax laughed.

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	16. Chapter 16

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Gemma frowned looking down at the club grocery list. "Okay. Who wrote down condoms five separate times?"

"Definitely not Tiggy." Delta mumbled beside her, earning a chuckle from Opie in the next isle. She looked over at the list in her mother's hand. "Isn't that Dad's handwriting?"

"Oh, yeah." Gemma concluded, her eyes catching a mischievous glint in them. "If you don't want a kid, I'd get a few boxes for yourself, sweetheart." She patted Delta's ass as she walked around her.

Opie turned his attention to Delta, staring at her over the shelving unit between them. "They're still worrying about chances of pregnancy."

Delta felt a blush creep up her cheeks, shaking her head. "They need those for a completely different reason." She saw the confusion on Opie's face, his eyes glancing back at Gemma. "Don't overthink it, Ope."

"Wait, are you talking about ana-" Opie began to ask, but stopped when Delta nodded her head. "Wow." He looked back at Gemma, seeing her dropping a box into the cart.

"Opie? If you are thinking about what my mom looks like naked or during sex right now, I will shove this ring so far down your throat you will never think about anal again." Delta stated, smirking at him in the most loving of ways.

Opie chuckled. "I was thinking of someone naked, but it wasn't Gemma." He grunted when a loaf of bread smacked into his face. "I meant you."

"You're disgusting." Delta laughed before hearing the bell above the front door ring. She glanced to see who it was, but ended up with her gaze frozen. "Opie?"

Opie saw her worried look and quickly followed her eyes, seeing Stahl and Hale by the front door. He made eye contact with Stahl before she started walking over. "Get behind me."

Delta quickly walked into the next isle and stood behind him, her hand gripping onto his. "Why doesn't this bitch get a life already?"

"Play nice." Gemma whispered, now standing behind her. "You're already on thin ice with her. So, cool it."

"Mr. Winston, just the man I was looking for." Stahl smiled, her hands clasping together in front of her. "I have a few questions for you pertaining to some sensitive matters. Would you care to join us at the station?"

Opie shrugged his shoulders. "Anything that needs to be discussed can be said here. I don't hide things from my family."

"Well, according to the law, these two ladies are not your family." Stahl said, her voice had an edge to it, some of the friendliness gone.

"My future wife and mother in law don't count?" Opie asked with a smirk. He saw the shock rush over Hale's face. "You can ask me questions here."

Stahl smiled deviously. "That's not going to happen, and, since she's your fiance now, she is subject to my questions too." She took out her cuffs and slapped them on Opie's wrists. She nodded to Hale. "Can you take her?"

Delta felt her stomach drop as Hale nodded his head with a smile. She reached back and grabbed onto Gemma. "Mom?"

"I can bring my daughter myself." Gemma stated, moving Delta behind her.

Stahl twisted Opie around to face the front door, but he craned his neck to watch everything unfold. "No offense, but I don't trust you, Mrs. Morrow."

"Mom?" Delta was nearly pleading before Hale grabbed her wrist and twisted it behind her back.

"Hey! Get your fucking hands off her!" Opie shouted, pushing back against Stahl.

Stahl shoved Opie back forward, her weight not doing much. "Take her in your car." She said, tossing a glance back at Hale.

Hale nodded. "I'll meet you back at the station." He watched as she left before turning back to Gemma with a smirk. "You always wanted grandkids, right, Gemma?" He tightened the cuffs around Delta's wrists. "I'm happy to work on it for you."

Gemma gritted her teeth together. "If you touch my daughter again, I will rip of your dick and force feed it to you."

"Now, that doesn't really work with me." Hale said, talking as if the whole situation was a game. "I have plans for that part of my anatomy." He grabbed Delta's shoulder, pulling her back against him. "I never told you that you could get engaged."

"It wasn't up to you, fucker." Delta snapped, snapping her elbow back into his stomach.

He grunted, but his hold was tighter on her now. Gemma pulled the gun out of her purse, discreetly shoving it into Hale's side. "Uncuff my daughter now. I will bring her in myself." She grabbed the keys from his belt, holding them up to his face. "Do it."

"I could arrest you right now. I doubt that gun is legal." Hale stated, his voice coming out like sandpaper.

Gemma smirked. "You won't." She kept the gun on him as he took the keys and unlocked Delta from the cuffs. The second they were off, Delta stepped behind Gemma. "Take a walk, Hale. Save those blue balls for your ATF pussy back at the office."

Hale's jaw rolled before he walked out of the grocery store, walking back to his squad car that he came in alone. He glanced back at them through the windows as he climbed into his car.

"Jesus Christ." Gemma breathed before slipping her gun back inside her purse. She turned to Delta, cupping her face in her hands. "Are you okay?"

"No," Delta breathed, shaking her head. She couldn't get her breathing under control, tears welling in her eyes. "Mom, he made it abundantly clear. He wants to have a kid. With me. He's bolder than last time. He's not afraid. That scares the shit out of me. At least last time the thought of one of the boys around made him run for cover. He doesn't care this time around."

Gemma stroked her hair. "Hey, listen. We're going to take care of this. Yes, he's grown a pair since he was last around, but so have you. Alright? You've got the whole club aware this time around. We're all watching your back on this. He isn't going to come near you."

Delta rolled her eyes. "If you didn't have your gun on you, he would've taken me out to that car and driven me to the middle of nowhere." Her hands trembled as she dropped them onto her hips. "It's too much, Mom. I can't. . .take much more of this." She gulped down a breath and lowered herself to the floor. "My chest hurts."

"Shit." Gemma breathed, dropping to the floor herself. She teared up seeing the light from Delta's eyes nearly disappear. "Baby, hey, keep those eyes open. I'm going to call for help."

Delta shook her head, putting her hand over Gemma's. "It'll pass. I just. . .need to relax and breathe."

Gemma frowned. "How do you know that?" She watched as Delta pressed two fingers against her throat, glancing down at her phone. "This has happened before, hasn't it?" Delta nodded. "When?"

"When I got home from the woods," Delta began, her breathing coming out somewhat normal now, "I showered for nearly an hour. The water was so cold. I was shivering. But, I couldn't stop. I felt so dirty, and I couldn't get him out of my head. I wanted to die. My heart stopped me from killing myself that night. The idea alone had me hyperventilating. My chest felt like a truck ran into it." She shook her head. "I was so raw when I crawled into bed. I just kept praying for morning to come."

"Because, you wanted the nightmare to be over." Gemma concluded. She brushed back some of Delta's hair, kissing the top of her head. "Well, at least this disease saved one of my kids." She sighed and rested her hand on Delta's chest, calming down once she felt a steady heartbeat thumping against her palm. "That's better." She pulled out her phone. "I'm going to call your father. I want as many of the boys down at the station as possible until Stahl and Hale are done questioning you. One biker may not scare him, but a whole club sure might."

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	17. Chapter 17

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Clay stood up from his bike when he saw Gemma's car pull around the corner. He turned back to the boys, pointing at Jax. "You go in with her. You don't move until she gets out."

"I'll keep her safe." Jax stated, stepping around Clay's bike to stand next to him. "They've got Opie in there too."

"Do we know what for?" Clay asked, waving as Gemma's car pulled up alongside him.

Jax scratched his jaw. "We think it was just a ploy from Hale to get him away from Delta. Opie spilled the beans about the engagement. Stahl took the opportunity to have Delta come in."

Clay smirked. "No wonder your mother pulled her gun out in the middle of the grocery store." He reached out, opening up the passenger door when Gemma cut the engine. "Hey, darlin'." He greeted, pulling Delta into a hug when she stepped out of the car. "Your mother said you were having chest pains. You don't have to go in there if you think it's going to get worse."

"I should be fine. Hale can't get me out of here without passing all of you. Plus, Opie is in there." Delta stated. She exhaled slowly. "I have to go in."

Gemma closed the passenger door before Clay pulled her to his side. "Go ahead, baby. We'll all be here."

Jax held out his hand, offering it to Delta. She accepted it with a small smile before walking with him into the station. She glanced up at Jax, seeing his blue eyes almost glowing. His jaw was tight. It looked like he was in agony. "Nothing happened, Jax."

"This time." Jax reminded her. "It should've ended the day it all started." He leaned down and kissed her head. "Are you sure you're ready for this? You really don't have to do this. We can deal with Stahl. I can end this right now."

"You are not going to prison over this." Delta breathed before giving him a small smile. "You're a good brother. You're an asshole, but a good big brother.

* * *

Hale stood with his arms crossed over his chest, looking down at the floor as Stahl berated him in front of every other cop in there. "She's eighteen! I brought in Sasquatch in the next room and you can't bring in a fucking eighteen year old. I don't care if she's the princess of SAMCRO. You bring her ass in; no questions asked."

Jax cleared his throat, raising his hand. "I'd gladly watch you continue to grind his balls into powder, but my family would like to go home as soon as possible." He squeezed his sister's hand when Hale's eyes shot to her. "So, if we could get a move on."

"Well," Stahl let out a frustrated smile, "looks like she has the brass set she faced me with the other day." She glanced down at her hand tangled with Jax's. "Or not."

Delta rolled her eyes. "Relax, honey. Your boy toy is here. You're the only set of legs opening for him these days." She smirked when Stahl's eyes turned deadly. "And for future reference, my balls are steel, not brass."

"Feisty, aren't you?" Stahl asked, her eyebrows raising upwards for a second. Her voice taunting. "Something to hide."

"Something to fight against." Delta corrected her. "I don't like being harassed by cops. I don't like watching my fiancé get dragged in by them. But, I really don't like cops who keep trying to mess with me because I won't go out with them." She turned her gaze to Hale. "Or, in this case, fuck them."

Hale glared at her, his fingers shaking even pressed against the top of his desk. "I'll take her to interrogation."

Stahl held up her hand. "No." She reached out, playing with the ends of Delta's hair. "I'll take her."

"Could I watch?" Jax asked with a grin.

Stahl shot a death glare at Jax before pointing down the hallway. "After you, Ms. Morrow."

* * *

Delta sat, crossing one leg over the other, while Stahl sat down across from her, file in hand. "I'm still not sure why I'm here."

"I just want to chat about the club." Stahl stated, shrugging her shoulders. She leaned back in her chair, leaving the folder on the table as if it wasn't there. "You are Clay and Gemma's daughter. That can't be easy."

"What life that's fun is ever easy?" Delta asked with a chuckle.

Stahl forced a smile. "You were born only six months after John Teller's death." Delta rolled her eyes. "That has to bother you. That has to bother your brother. You being the reason his parents split in the first place."

Delta let out a laugh. "Are you seriously trying to investigate John Teller's death? He drove into a fucking semi while over the speed limit. He chickened out." She brushed her hair out of her eyes. "But, that all happened before I was born. So, what do I know?"

"I think you know a lot more than you let on." Stahl retorted. "You are a carbon copy of your mother. Attitude, language, looks. Your parents run that club. You have to know something that goes on that could help us. It could save you."

"My club keeps me safe. They are a group of motorcycle enthusiasts. My dad will tell you no differently." Delta stated, smoothing her nails with her fingers calmly. "I don't need saving. Not by you. Not by Hale. Not by anybody."

Stahl cleared her throat. "Speaking of Hale, you seem to have a beef with him. What's going on there?"

Delta scoffed. "Trust me. I'm not touching him. He's all yours."

"Not what I was asking." Stahl said, an edge in her voice as a warning. "You talked about a sexual relationship between the two of you when I last saw you." Delta met her eyes, blue to blue. "I have a feeling there's a lot more to the story than just a few fucks in the back of the squad car."

"You could say that." Delta breathed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I bet he told you to go after Opie. He knew I was with Ope. I bet he also told you I was full of shit. Tried to make you believe I was crazy and just misunderstanding signals."

Stahl shook her head. "He said that at first, but then he told me that you aborted his baby."

Delta's eyes widened, her mouth dropping open. "Are you fucking kidding me?" She stood up, marching towards the door and flinging it open. It slammed against the wall inside the interrogation room, and Stahl started yelling at her. She could see Jax stand up by the front doors. He was already bolting towards her. She barely looked in his direction before she kicked open the door to the next interrogation room. Inside sat Opie across the table from Hale. They both looked startled, both for entirely different reasons. "You sick, sorry son of a bitch!"

Before she could stop herself, she lunged forward, tackling Hale out of the chair and onto the floor. She could hear yelling and screaming around her, and she couldn't definitely say all of it wasn't her, but she saw red as she brought her fist down square to Hale's jaw. "You fucking liar!" She punched him again before she felt a pair of hands on her. "No!" She couldn't stop it. Whoever had her, yanked her off of him so fast that the momentum sent them flying back to the wall. They landed on the floor. She looked over to see Opie on the floor with her.

Jax crouched down in front of her, cupping her face in his hands. "What the hell do you think you're doing? You just got yourself arrested."

"He fucking lied!" Delta gasped out. "Told her that I aborted my baby! He's a fucking liar!" She tried to get up again, but Jax and Opie kept her sitting on the ground. She saw around Jax though. Stahl was kneeling beside Hale, his nose was bleeding like mad and his jaw was already turning purple.

Stahl stood up, her eyes like fire. "Why the hell does that matter?" She took her cuffs off of her belt. "Delta Morrow, you are under arrest for assaulting a police officer."

"No!"

Delta's eyes moved to the voice. Hale was breathing heavily, leaning against the wall. Blood dripped off his chin and onto his shirt. He shook his head. "I'm not pressing charges. She's free to go."

Stahl's eyes widened as she turned her gaze back to him. "Excuse me?"

"Let her go." Hale demanded. He watched as Stahl stormed out of the room. His eyes turned back to Delta. "You didn't kill her."

Jax blocked Delta from his view, turning to face him. "No, asswipe. The stress you put her under caused a miscarriage. This is all your fault."

Hale nodded his head. "Let me fix it. We can try again, Delta. We didn't even try the first time."

Delta teared up and barely whispered. "Fucking kill him."

"I will, darlin'." Jax whispered back before kissing her forehead. He jutted his chin to Opie. "Let's get her out of here. I think she busted up a couple knuckles." He stood up, blocking Hale's view of her the entire time before she walked out. Hale stared at him, almost as if looking through him. "You won't live to keep that promise."

Hale smiled, blood staining his front teeth. "I'll have fun trying even if it doesn't happen."

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	18. Chapter 18

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"God dammit!" Delta spat as she stormed out the front doors of the station. Opie and Jax were hot on her heels. She ran her hands through her hair before she felt a pair of hands on her. "No!" She screamed.

"Hey, darlin', it's just me." Clay said, holding up his hands. Once she saw it was him, he pulled her to his chest and turned, casting his gaze to Opie and Jax. "What the hell happened? You were supposed to watch her. Her hand looks like she went into a fucking ring."

Jax shoved his hands into his pockets. "She tackled Hale." He glanced at Opie, seeing the helpless look in his eyes as he stared down at the ground. "Hale told Stahl that Delta aborted the baby. Stahl brought it up when she was questioning her. It was most likely to get her to snap and say something incriminating, but, like Mom, she snapped and went after the source."

"Jesus Christ." Gemma breathed, sitting on the hood of her car. She looked over at the boys all standing by their bikes, waiting for an order. "Can someone call the hospital? She'll need an x-ray."

"On it, Gem." Tiggy said, holding up one hand with a thumbs up while the other pressed his cell phone to his ear.

Clay cupped Delta's face in his hands, his fingers tangling in her long brown locks. Her chest was heaving and her eyes were lit up like she was about to commit murder. "Delta, I need you to breathe and calm down. Did he touch you?"

Opie cleared his throat. "He made it abundantly clear that's his only intention. He's set on having a kid. He doesn't care when or how as long as it's her." He shook his head, running a hand down his face. "He told all three of us outright."

Clay's eyes widened as he looked back to his daughter. She looked up at him. "I want him dead, Daddy. I don't care if you have to drag him through Charming by the back of your bike. I want his ass in an unmarked grave where he can rot in hell." Delta's voice was dripping venom. Her body shook in anger. "He needs to die."

"Okay, okay, we will." Clay said, pulling her back to his chest and kissing the top of her head. "Don't worry. We will figure out a game plan and hit him where it counts." He cupped the back of her head before seeing Opie standing behind her, waiting for her. He leaned down to Delta's ear. "Go to the hospital with Ope. Get that hand checked out. I'll meet you back at the house."

Delta nodded against his kutte before his arms dropped from around her. She turned to Opie, wrapping her arms around his neck as Clay walked back to the rest of the boys. She exhaled against Opie's shoulder. "I'm so happy you're okay." She felt the stress start to leave her when his arms wrapped around her. "You are okay, right?"

Opie brushed back her hair. "I'm fine. They didn't do anything to me." He kissed her forehead before looking around. "My bike is still at the clubhouse."

"C'mon, I'll drive you." Gemma said. She unlocked the car, watching as they both climbed inside, and turned to Jax. "How bad was it?"

"It was pretty fucking bad, Ma. If Opie hadn't grabbed her when he did, she could be facing major charges. I've faced her right hook. Delivered to the head," Jax shook his head, exhaling through his teeth, "she could've killed him." He looked in at his sister, curled into Opie's side in the backseat. "But, Hale told Stahl he wasn't pressing charges. Which didn't make sense to me. If she was arrested, she'd be in lockup: a place he can access and we can't."

Gemma looked back at the station, seeing Hale standing by the door. An icepack was pressed to his jaw, and his eyes were trained on her car. "As sick as he is, I'm sure it would feel too easy for him. You heard Delta in the woods. He likes the cat and mouse game. He thrives on it." She tugged on Jax's kutte. "Watch your six. We're in the way of what he wants most. We've done a lot worse for a lot less."

Jax nodded. "Will do." He kissed Gemma's cheek. "Please get my sister home safely. She needs a breather."

"She needs Hale in a body bag." Gemma stated before opening her car door and climbing in.

* * *

"So, nothing's wrong?" Gemma asked, her arms crossed over her chest as she stared back at the doctor standing in front of her.

"Just bad bruises. I'd ice her hand tonight, twenty minutes on, twenty off." The doctor suggested, handing her a note with his instructions. "The cut was small enough that no stitches were needed. It will be sore for the next few days. But, she'll be good as new by Monday."

Gemma let out a sigh of relief, glancing back into the room through the window in the door. "What about her heart? She was complaining of chest pains earlier. Apparently, it's happened before. I don't want to lose another kid to this, doc."

The doctor smiled sympathetically. "Her heart rate is normal. I'm assuming what happened was just a very quick difference in blood pressure along with stress. At least, that's why she told me. It would explain the chest pains considering what her heart condition is." He patted Gemma's shoulder. "She's okay, Mrs. Morrow. If she was on the verge of cardiac arrest, we would see signs of it."

"You didn't the first time. She almost died in this very hospital." Gemma nearly spat at him. "So, don't tell me she's okay. I heard that God awful beep when her heart stopped just like I did with Thomas. We had her sedated for days. You almost went in to operate on her. There is no way you are going to convince me that she is okay."

The doctor sighed with a nod. "I understand your concern, but, as for her records, she has a clean bill of health." He turned away and walked down the hallway, away from Gemma, as she scowled at him.

"She's okay?"

Gemma felt the hair's on her neck stand on end. She turned to see Hale, his face swollen to the point where most wouldn't recognize him outside of his police uniform. One of his arms was hugged to his torso in a sling. She jutted her chin towards him. "My daughter did that?"

"Between her and the concrete floor, I'm not sure what broke what." Hale sighed before looking towards the door. His eyes moved back to Gemma when she stepped in front of the door. "I can't even ask if she's okay."

"You just want to know if she's still open for carrying your child, which is never happening." Gemma gritted out. "You hurt my daughter, and you will die for it. If not by the club, then by me or my daughter. I personally guarantee you that it will be a torturous death."

Hale smirked. "Scary." He stepped closer to her, glaring down at her. "Delta can make her own choices. She decided to start this whole thing the moment she decided to protect you and Clay. She could've ended it at any moment. She may not have liked everything that happened, but she certainly didn't put a stop to it. After a while, she stopped fighting me." He shrugged his good shoulder. "So, you tell me if I really am the monster you think I am."

Gemma growled deep in her throat. "You're disgusting. I should've castrated you when we were younger. You made moves on me back then if you don't remember that sick detail."

"Oh, I remember." Hale scoffed. "What better way to get back at the woman who rejected you for a biker than to sleep with her daughter." He smirked when her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. He leaned closer, his breath tickling her ear. "Revenge was sweet. Your daughter was sweeter." He kissed her cheek before turning and walking away, aware of the death glare Gemma was giving his back as he headed towards the elevators.

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	19. Chapter 19

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Gemma sat, biting her thumb nail, as she stared into space in the hospital waiting room. She kept replaying Hale's words over in her head, remembering his ego in high school, and wondering how fate would've changed her life now if she had just done him once.

 _"A girl?" Clay asked, wide eyed, as he stood a few paces from Gemma in the clubhouse. The boys were out working on their bikes, leaving the two alone. "Are you sure?"_

 _Gemma played with her fingers, sitting on the bar with her legs crossed. Broken peanut shells from the party the night before were scattered around her, and the place smelled of sex, making her more_ _nauseous than she already was. "It's too early to tell right now, but I can feel it, Clay. This baby is a girl."_

 _Clay ran a hand down his face before staring at her for a moment. "You're worried."_

 _"No shit. I'm worried." Gemma chuckled darkly. "Thomas just passed away from the family flaw. Not only am I worried about that, but I'm worried about raising a girl in this club. Even when I was with John, he told me how hard it was raising boys in this violence. He couldn't imagine trying to keep a daughter safe. I'm not naive to the ways of other clubs. If she were to get into the wrong hands-"_

 _"She won't." Clay interrupted her. He stepped forward, dropping his hands to her thighs. "John was a coward who ran from his club and his family. I'm not John. Yes, if this baby is a girl, it will be difficult. She'll see shit no kid should ever see. But, you can bet my life that I will do everything in my power to protect her. I can't promise people won't hurt her. We can't make those promises in this life. But, I can promise you that she'll be protected as long as I'm alive."_

 _Gemma cupped his face in her hands, her thumbs rubbing over the scruff along his jaw. "What if the flaw takes her away before we have the chance?"_

 _Clay pecked her lips, shaking his head. "We gotta believe in her, Gem." He rested a hand on her stomach. "If we don't believe in her, what hope is there for her?"_

"Mom?"

Gemma blinked and shook herself out of her memory before looking to the waiting room doorway. Delta stood with Opie standing behind her. Her hand was wrapped in a gauze with a piece of athletic tape, but there wasn't a cast. "Hey, fighter, you ready to go home?"

* * *

Delta carefully wrapped a towel around her hand and rested the large bag of peas over it, sighing in relief when some of the pain subsided. She glanced over at Gemma when she set down two plates of food for the both of them. "You've been quiet."

"There's a lot to process." Gemma replied, sitting down and glancing out at Opie who was watching TV in the living room. "It's hard to learn when something is your fault."

Delta frowned, picking up her fork. "What are you talking about? What happened isn't your fault?"

Gemma leaned back in the chair, turning her eyes to her daughter for the first time since they got back from the hospital. "It is though." She gulped hard, her throat burning. "I ran into Hale at the hospital while you were getting your hand wrapped. I asked him why he chose you, why he felt the need to prey on a fifteen year old girl. He told me he picked you because I didn't go out with him when we were younger." She saw the shock rush over her daughter's face. "It's been killing me all day. This could've all been avoided if I didn't blow him off."

Delta shook her head. "You know that's bullshit, Mom." She reached over and linked her fingers with Gemma's. "It doesn't matter what happened back then. You aren't with him now. If you would've said yes once, he would've kept asking. Eventually, you would've said no. Hale has his own plans." She squeezed Gemma's hand. "He's just trying to get into your head. Believe me. He's good at it."

"How do you know he didn't do this to get back at me?" Gemma asked, her tone desperate and serious.

"He was a hateful guy. He would berate me, some of his insults hurt worse than what he actually did." Delta whispered. "But, he never mentioned a word about you. He didn't say anything about you until I first saw him after he came back. He just said I looked like you. But, he was after me, Mom. I don't know why he picked me, but it wasn't because of you."

Gemma sighed and squeezed Delta's hand comfortingly. "We should figure out why he chose you. It might help us persuade him to stop torturing you." She brushed aside a few strands of hair. "You never told me he came up to see you on that field trip."

Delta smiled sadly. "He nearly drowned me while attacking me." She adjusted her sore hand, grimacing when she felt the pain shoot up her arm. "What did you want me to tell you? That it wasn't the only time he nearly killed me. That he tied me to his bed for a weekend before sending me home to do schoolwork so I'd have good enough grades for him to pull me out for ten minutes to fuck me in the janitor's closet."

"Baby, you can tell me anything." Gemma breathed, tearing up. She cupped Delta's face in her hands. "You're right. I don't want to hear about how Hale raped you and abused you. But, guess what? I need to know. I need to know what happens to you, because I love you too much to see you suffering silently." She tugged on Delta's good hand, pulling her daughter to sit on her lap. "I told your father that I never wanted a daughter. This was exactly the reason why. But, I kept you because you were too damn important. I wanted you to live, baby. I raised you since you took your first breath, and I need to know if anything or anyone threatens to take that away from me."

Delta wiped her eyes, smiling slightly when Gemma reached up herself to wipe at her cheeks. "He's not going to stop."

Gemma sighed. "He made that clear today. He wants to keep you alive at least. I'm glad I don't have to worry about snipers." She smiled when Delta let out a chuckle. "We just need to keep doing what we're doing. He may be reminding you of painful memories, but he's not creating new ones."

Both girls looked up when they heard the kitchen door open and slam shut. Clay stood, his hands covered in oil, with an empty water glass in his hand. "What did I miss?"

"Nothing." Delta said, shaking her head. "Just talking about the clusterfuck I'm in." She wrapped her arms around Gemma, pulling herself closer. "Mom saw Hale at the hospital."

Clay smirked and pointed at Delta's bruised hand. "That's my girl. Throwing doctor worthy punches." He clicked his tongue. "Fucker deserved it."

Gemma rolled her eyes. "Have you thought of a way to get to him yet?"

"The boys have been tailing him carefully. He's with that ATF agent all the time." Clay stated. "As much as I want him dead, I want him to suffer."

"That's the only way to kill him." Delta stated. "I won't be happy any other way."

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	20. Chapter 20

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 _Delta sat with her back pressed against the tree, a gag tightly wound around her head, as Hale stood in front of her, tugging at his belt. She sobbed when he knelt down, grabbing both of her ankles tightly and pulling her beneath him._

Clay nearly sprang up to his feet, his breath coming out in short spurts as his heart pounded in his ears. His shirt stuck to his chest, drenched in sweat. He looked around quickly, taking stock of his surroundings and reminding himself of what was happening.

Gemma sat up quickly, turning on the bedside lamp, when she felt the mattress jolt underneath her, waking her up. "Clay, what's wrong? What happened?"

"I saw him, Gem." Clay breathed. "I saw him with his fucking hands all over her in the woods." He squeezed his hands into fists. "He's fucking dead." He quickly surveyed the room again. "I can't wait until morning." He bolted from the room, ignoring Gemma yelling at him to stop. He didn't go far, nearly slamming the door down to his daughter's room.

Both Opie and Delta were quick to wake when they heard Gemma's cries from the next room. When the door barged open, Opie was quick to pull his gun, but relaxed when he saw Clay walk in. "What's wrong?"

"I need her." Clay's voice cracked before he reached out and took Delta's hands into his, wrapping her up in his arms and nearly crushing her. He heaved out a large breath, burying his nose in her hair. "I'm so sorry, darlin'."

"Daddy? What's wrong?" Delta asked, her own voice cracking seeing the emotion clearly displayed on her father's face.

Clay shook his head, cupping her face in his hands. "I saw it. In that fucking nightmare, I saw him and that tree."

Delta gaped. "You just had a nightmare over it." She felt the knot in her stomach twist tighter, more tears building in her eyes. "I didn't want this to happen."

"Clay?" Gemma stood in the doorway, a robe tied around her waist as she stared at the exchange. She walked up beside them, stroking his cheek. "C'mon, they need their sleep. She's okay. She's here. Go take a shower. You'll feel better."

Delta nodded. "Trust me. A shower helps." She forced a smile out for her father before his hands dropped with a nod of his head. He kissed her forehead before walking out of the room. She turned to her mother. "Is this the first one?"

Gemma stroked Delta's hair. "For him, yes. Usually, he's the one trying to calm me down." She saw the guilt hit her daughter. "Baby, this isn't you. You had nothing to do with this. Hale is terrorizing you, and it's wrecking havoc on your father and I as well."

"Just go make sure he's okay." Delta whispered. She gladly accepted the hug from Gemma before she left the room, closing the door and turning out the light when she left. She turned to Opie, her arms crossed over her chest. "What about you? Have you had nightmares?"

"Not since we started sleeping in the same bed again. When I first found out about Hale and when he came back, I had a few." Opie admitted. He watched as she dropped onto the foot of the bed, staring blankly ahead. "We care about you too much not to worry like mad."

Delta shook her head. "I never thought you guys would have nightmares though." She bit her lip. "I can't let him hurt you guys, Ope. It's one thing to come after me. When it's affecting you-"

Opie pulled her into his lap. "You are not going anywhere near him."

"I don't know if I have a choice anymore." Delta whispered, closing her eyes when he held her tighter against him.

* * *

Delta climbed out of her car as Clay and Opie pulled into their spots across from her. She saw Gemma's car already parked and wondered if she had even gone back to sleep after settling her father back down for the night. It was still early, too early for the boys to be up and moving around. She smiled when Opie stood from his bike, a large yawn escaping him as he stretched, while Clay stood staring at him like he was bigfoot.

When she heard another motorcycle pulling onto the lot, she shielded her eyes from the sun to see Jax rolling onto the pavement. She waved at him when he jutted his chin towards her and headed to the office, glad that there was some normalcy after the night they had all endured. She quickly locked her car as she opened the door to the office, finding Gemma already deep into a pile of paperwork that she had pushed off yesterday.

She looked up when she heard the door open, giving a smile to her daughter. "Hey, baby, I didn't expect you to get here so early."

"None of us thought you would be up at the crack of dawn to work on those shitty reports." Delta chuckled before starting up the coffee maker in the corner. She slipped her purse onto the filing cabinet. "What time did you get up anyway? Ope and I didn't even hear you leave."

"I couldn't go back to sleep after getting your father back to bed, so I thought I'd make myself useful here." Gemma breathed, leaning back in her chair and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. "How did you sleep?"

Delta shook her head. "I couldn't." She held up her hand when Gemma opened her mouth to speak. "Save it. It doesn't matter how many times you tell me. I still feel guilty about all of this. I thought telling you guys would make things better. It only made things worse for you."

Gemma reached out and tugged on Delta's hand, having her sit down on the small couch beside her. "Listen to me. Keeping this a secret was eating you alive. You told us yourself that you tried to kill yourself over this. If you hadn't told us, you'd probably be in the same place as Maverick." She pinched her chin gently in her fingers. "You can't expect this to not affect us. Baby, there's just no way that could happen."

"I had never seen Dad cry until I told him about this shit." Delta fought back, recoiling from her mother's touch and curling herself into the couch cushions. "I saw him cry when I told you guys about Hale, when I lost Maverick, the night I finally told you how everything started, and last night. All of those instances have to do with Hale blackmailing me."

"All of those instances have to do with situations where your father feels he couldn't protect you." Gemma corrected her. "Yes, Hale is apart of them, but your father would never bat an eye over him. His main concern is you. You're not the only one feeling guilty about this. Your father has been taking it harder than I have." She pulled on Delta's leg, uncurling her from the couch. "I know you want this to be over, but it's not over yet."

They both looked up when they heard the garage door being lifted open. Through the window, they saw Jax walk in and frown looking up at the ceiling. "What is he doing?" Delta asked.

"I doubt he's asking for guidance from God." Gemma mumbled before the two stood and and walked through the adjoining door. Delta stood behind her mother on the small wooden staircase. "What's wrong?"

Jax glanced at the two and waved towards the office. "Work stuff. Go back inside."

Delta followed Jax's gaze and saw a rope hanging down from the metal chains of the garage door. "What the hell?" She pushed passed Gemma and moved to get a better look at it.

"Delta, no!" Jax fought her, trying to push her away.

Delta gasped and covered her mouth with her hands when she saw everything in its entirety. The rope was dangling down, two loops tied off on each end, with the middle frayed with splitters. Dangling from one of the loops was a bracelet, one that Delta wore in high school until Hale took it from her. "He - he was here." She felt the air leaving her lungs faster than they could take it in. She felt Jax's arms wrap around her before she was suddenly sitting on the floor.

Gemma rushed over to her, cupping her daughter's face in her hands. "Delta, breathe. Baby, I need you to breathe." She looked up behind her to see the rope. "Holy shit." She pushed on Jax's shoulder. "Go get Clay and Opie."

"I need Opie." Delta rasped out, grasping onto her brother's arm. "I need him."

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	21. Chapter 21

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Jax rushed into the clubhouse, finding Opie at the bar while Clay stood in the chapel. "Opie! Delta needs you now. Hale was here, Clay."

Both men stood up, Opie first to bolt out of the clubhouse. Clay's jaw set as he walked up to Jax. "What do you mean Hale was here?"

"He must've came last night." Jax said. "The rope he used on Delta in the forest is hanging up in the garage right now." He watched as his stepdad ran a hand down his face. "I thought the prospects were supposed to be watching him."

Clay nodded his head. "They were. They are." A moment later, his hand swept the empty beer bottles off the bar and sent them crashing to the floor. Broken glass shattered across the wood beneath their feet. "I talked to them this morning. They said Hale hadn't left his house all night."

"Well, either Hale snuck by them or they weren't at his house all night, because Delta is nearly passed out in the fucking garage!" Jax argued. He slammed his hand against the bar. "I want this handled, Clay. He's coming for her. Just give me the word."

Clay gritted his teeth together as he walked towards the door. "I'd give it to you if I thought we wouldn't be killed in prison."

* * *

Opie sprinted across the lot seeing Delta sitting on the ground with Gemma holding her against her chest. "Delta!" He yelled, somewhat relieved when she looked up. He quickly knelt down in front of her, getting a good look at her when Gemma unwrapped her arms from her. He saw her hands trembling and heard her hyperventilating somewhat. He pressed his forehead to hers, getting her to look into his eyes. "Hey, baby, look at me. Just focus on me. I'm right here. Okay, nothing happens when I'm right here." He could feel her hands tremble even gripping onto his. "I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."

Delta cupped his face in her hands, inhaling deeply despite her shaking exhales. "I know." She whispered, closing her eyes when Opie lifted her slightly and wrapped his arms around her. She clung to him like a Kola bear, hugging his body with her arms and legs. "He's not going to stop, Ope. He won't stop until one of us is dead."

Opie looked up to see Clay and Jax now in the garage in front of him. Jax reached up and yanked down the rope, the realization of what that rope actually was hitting him then. "We'll take care of him."

Delta shook her head and untangled herself from Opie. "I need to do it." She turned and reached for the rope in Jax's hand.

Clay stepped forward and held his arm out as Jax held the rope out of her reach. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm taking care of my problem. I should've done it before when he was focused on just getting my pants off." Delta stated before reaching for the rope again. She grunted when Clay grabbed her around her waist and hauled her backwards. "Daddy, let me go." She struggled harder, but he continued to pull her backwards and up the stairs into the office. "If you don't let me go, I won't hesitate to kick you in the balls."

"Like your mother doesn't do that enough." Clay huffed out. kicking the office door shut. He held her tighter, cupping her face in his hands. "But, you need to listen to me."

Delta felt the tears burning her eyes as she held onto his arms, shaking her head. "He won't stop."

"Look at me, darlin'." He breathed, waiting until her blue eyes met his matching ones. "I know you're hurting. But, you're out of your mind if you think I'm just going to let you march up to him. What he did was horrible. I want him dead too." He felt his own tears pour over. "And, I won't let him near you. Before, I hate that I didn't have a clue to what he was doing to you, but it won't happen again." He pulled her to his chest, relieved when she wrapped her arms around him tightly instead of try to push him away. "I'm so sorry that this is happening."

Delta hugged Clay tighter, resting her face against his chest. "Me too."

Clay kissed the top of her head, brushing back the hair from her face. "As much as I want to believe you'll do what I say, I know you've got your mother's personality. Give me your car keys."

"Opie drove me here." Delta stated, pulling back slightly.

"Baby, I see your car in the parking lot. I watched you drive in." Clay chuckled before reaching into the filing cabinet for her purse. He fished the keys out of the bag before stuffing them in his back pocket. "You'll get them back later. I promise."

Delta rolled her eyes and exhaled sharply. "Way to ruin the moment."

Clay grinned and kissed her forehead. "I love you too."

Delta watched as he walked out of the office, walking over to Jax who had the rope resting on the back of his bike. Opie stood with them, clearly pissed that this all went down when the prospects were supposed to be watching Hale. She felt his anger triple when his hand slammed down onto the seat of his bike, the sound reverberating throughout the lot and catching the attention of some of the other club members. They soon headed into the club, Clay calling for a meeting in the chapel.

She felt two arms wrap around her waist from behind, a chin resting on her shoulder. "I want to burn that damn rope.'' Delta whispered.

"I want to hang Hale from it." Gemma breathed, her head resting against her daughter's. "I know this is hard, but we'll get through this. You've got all of us." She brushed aside some of Delta's hair, getting a good look at her face. "I hope you know that."

"I do." Delta smiled slightly. She looked around when Gemma stepped back, sitting behind her desk. "I'm going to get something to eat. I didn't grab anything at the house.'

Gemma nodded her head. "I'll get a start on the paperwork."

Delta smiled and trotted down the steps of the office, looking around the lot again for any club members who didn't go inside yet. The lot was desolate, and she took the opportunity to reach into her pocket and pull out the keys to Clay's bike. Glancing back at the office, she quickly climbed onto the bike and slipped on the helmet. She felt the bile rise in her throat as she grabbed the rope laying on Jax's bike and draped it over her legs.

* * *

"Who was that?" Clay asked, hearing a bike roar away outside. He stood up, his brothers murmuring as they followed him. When he stepped outside, Gemma was screaming towards the gate and his bike was gone. He patted his pockets, growling slightly when he realized his keys were missing. He whirled around. "Follow her! She wants Hale dead, and there's nothing from stopping her right now." He hurried over to Gemma, joining her as she stormed to her car, the boys firing up the engines to their bikes. "She stole my keys when I hugged her."

"That's what you get for teaching her how to steal a wallet." Gemma spat as they both got into her car. "She's going to get herself killed."

Clay grabbed the dashboard as she slammed her foot into the gas pedal. "Or worse."

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	22. Chapter 22

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Delta swung her leg out, resting the bike on the kickstand, before she stormed into the police station with the rope in her hand. She nearly busted the door off the hinges as she lunged inside, finding Hale's back to her as he talked to Stahl. Grabbing both ends of the rope, she swung the rope over Hale's head, catching it on his throat, before shoving one loop through the other. Once she pulled, it tightened around his neck like a noose.

Stahl pulled out her gun, but Hale held up his hands, his voice choking as he struggled against the rope. "Don't!" He pulled at the rope, but Delta pushed her foot into his back, keeping him from loosening her hold. "Delta-"

"Don't you dare fucking say my name, you coward." Delta spat, her foot on his back forcing him to choke harder. "Who has the advantage now? Huh? Who's the one begging to be let go!"

"You can't do this!" Stahl yelled, bringing up her gun again. Hale slapped the gun away before Stahl could fire it. "She's trying to kill you."

Hale pointed towards the computer. "Play it."

Stahl scoffed, staring at him in disbelief. "Fine." She reached over to his computer and pressed the enter button, turning the volume all the way up.

The room filled with a steady rhythm, one that haunted Delta many nights, one that no longer existed. "Maverick?" She breathed. She looked back at Hale, kicking out his legs and forcing him onto his knees. She looped the rope around his neck again and yanked hard. "Why do you have that?"

"It's evidence." Stahl stated. "For you killing your baby."

Delta felt the tears pouring over, and she continued to pull on the rope. "Bullshit. You know I didn't do that."

"She was mine too." Hale gasped out, his neck turning a slight shade of blue.

Delta tugged on the rope like a leash. "She was mine. Mine only."

Stahl turned to Unser. "Aren't you going to do anything?" Unser just shrugged his shoulders, shaking his head. Huffing out a breath, she moved towards Hale and Delta, but Hale shoved her away. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"He's sick that way." Delta gritted out. "He wants his incubator to be in prime condition for when he wants to stick a kid in her." She leaned down towards his ear. "You will never be inside me again." She let go of the rope, kicking him forward. When he dropped to his hands gasping for breath, she saw the flash drive in his computer and yanked it out. "She was never yours. You don't get to know her." The audio on the computer stopped just as Clay, Jax, and Opie hurried into the station.

"Oh shit!" Jax breathed, seeing Hale's beat red face and the rope around his neck. He saw Delta standing, breathing hard, with tears running down her cheeks. He looked back towards Clay. "Get her the fuck back to the clubhouse. Ope and I will be back later."

Clay grabbed Delta's arm, pulling her towards the door before seeing the flash drive in her hand. "What's that?"

Delta dropped it to the ground and smashed her heel into it, effectively destroying the flash drive. "Mine."

"Hold on!" Hale demanded. "Can I have a word with Delta? I think, after nearly killing me in front of fifteen officers, she could give me a few seconds."

"She doesn't owe you anything!" Opie barked.

Hale held up his hands. "Fine." He looked over at Delta. "Just know that what was last time still stands this time. It's one or the other, and I'm not bluffing this time." He lifted the rope from his neck and tossed it onto the desk. "Thanks for returning it. I just thought of another use for it."

Jax looked back at Clay, his entire face rigid. "Get her out of here."

* * *

"Unbelievable." Gemma breathed as she paced alongside the chapel table. "How could you be so stupid?"

Delta ran her thumb over the rope burn on both her palms. She avoided both her parents' gazes at all costs, knowing her actions today were only going to bring a babysitter until the moment Hale was buried. "Sorry, I don't exactly have the best role models when it comes to keeping my cool."

Clay's rough voice cut her off. "This isn't about us right now. You stole my keys and almost hung Hale in front of police officers." His voice calmed slightly when he could still see a twinge of red around her eyes. "What was on that flash drive?"

"He had Maverick's heartbeat saved on it." Delta breathed, picking at the denim of her jeans.

"How the hell did he get that?" Gemma asked.

Delta shrugged. "Probably had someone at the hospital get it for him. Stahl said it was evidence to show I killed Maverick by having an abortion." She saw Gemma's face turn a few shades of red. "She can't prove it. The hospital records show what actually happened."

Clay ran a hand down his face. "Hale said he wasn't bluffing this time. What do you think that means?"

"It's either me or someone in the club. Hell, it could be the club. Whatever it is. He's got evidence this time around." Delta sighed. "If I don't do what he wants, the club suffers. If it's the entire club, he'd have free access to me. Win, win for him all around." She shook her head, bringing her knees up to her chest, sitting in her brother's chair at the table. "It might even be JT again."

* * *

Delta sat, biting her lip, at the bar inside the clubhouse. After being reamed out by both her parents, she was all but grounded for her own protection. Not that she could argue against it. She glanced back up at the clock, the pads of her fingers touching the engagement ring on her left ring finger, wondering where Jax and Opie had disappeared to when Clay dragged her away from the police station. She looked over her shoulder when she felt a large hand on her back. "Hey."

"Hey." Piney huffed out, taking a seat next to her. "I don't know if I've ever seen you act so much like your parents in your entire life."

"Should I take that as a compliment?" Delta chuckled, reaching over the bar and grabbing a beer. She slid it to him.

Piney nodded his thanks. "That deserves the nobel prize."

Delta laughed. "I'll listen for the announcement on the news." They both turned when the clubhouse door opened. Once the door slammed shut and the sunlight wasn't pouring in, Jax and Opie emerged from the small hallway. Delta stood up when she saw blood spatter on both of their shirts. "What happened?"

Opie didn't answer. As soon as she stepped around the bar, he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her against him, his lips crashing onto hers. Despite her surprise, she kissed him back hard, happy that he was safe. When he pulled back, his forehead dropped down to press against hers. "Had to take care of some business." He whispered before pecking her lips again. He pulled her against his chest before seeing the shocked expressions on everybody's face, excluding Jax, Clay, and Gemma. "What? A guy can't kiss his fiancé?"

Tiggy gaped, pointing at Opie while wildly looking between him and Clay. "We didn't even know you were fucking her!"

"Tiggy!" Clay barked, making everybody inside the clubhouse jump. Gemma smirked as she pressed herself against his side, resting a hand on his chest.

"I mean sweet, sweet love." Tiggy corrected himself, not phased by Clay's outburst.

Delta laughed hard into Opie's chest before looking back at the club members, biting her bottom lip. "Guess you haven't been paying attention, Tig."

"Or drilling a peep hole in the wrong room." Happy mumbled, earning a glare from Tiggy.

Opie tugged on Delta's hand. "C'mon, I gotta talk to you." He glanced back at Clay, who nodded once, before he pulled Delta with him out of the clubhouse. Delta looked back, seeing both Clay and Gemma's smile. She met Jax's eyes, seeing his smirk before he winked at her.

Once they were outside, he held Opie's hand in both of hers, following him to the picnic table. He sat down, pulling her to straddle his lap. She chuckled softly, cupping his face in her hands. "What's going on?"

"Well, I have some news," Opie sighed, "and a suggestion."

"Are you going to explain why there's blood on your shirt?" Delta asked, her fingers running over the fresh blood speckled there. "And, is this suggestion of yours sexual?"

Opie chuckled. "Not this time." He rested his hands on her hips, squeezing them slightly. "I'm sure you're wondering where Jax and I disappeared to." His eyes avoided hers, looking over towards the office. "We had to go take care of the prospects. We found out they haven't been outside Hale's house for a couple nights. We didn't tell them what Hale did, and, since Hale was going home with Stahl, they figured it wasn't a big deal if they watched him or not." He wrapped his arms around Delta's waist, pulling her closer to him. "We slaughtered them like pigs, Delta."

Delta caressed his cheek, trying to get him to meet her eyes. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because, I know we're not going to work if I keep these things from you." Opie breathed. "It may work for others, but I can't be with you if I have to keep things from you." His eyes finally met hers. "Which leads me to my suggestion. If you need to stay in the dark, we have to end it now. But, if you want what I want, marry me this weekend. As soon as possible."

"What?" Delta asked, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Marry me this weekend and finally put me out of my misery." Opie smiled, cupping her face in his hands. "But, only if we are one hundred percent open and honest with each other. Look, I want you to be mine, officially. I don't want to wait any more. Plus, it'll give us an excuse to get out of town for a week or two."

Delta pulled back, standing up from his lap. "Wait a minute. Get out of town? You just want to get me away from Hale."

Opie sighed. "Can you blame me?" He stood up as well, reaching out to grab her hips again. She pushed his hands away though. "This doesn't change the fact that I want to marry you, the sooner the better. But, you can't tell me this comes out from no where. Delta, Hale was here last night. You nearly choked him out in the fucking police station today. He's not getting the message that you are off limits. Is it really so bad that I want to get you out of here for a while, until things settle down?"

Delta crossed her arms over her chest, looking up at him under her lashes. "If I leave, he'll know I left because of him. I'm not going to give him anymore power."

"If he asks, he'll find out we're off on our honeymoon. He'll know what we want him to know." Opie fought back. He reached out again, his hands reaching her hips this time. "Screw him anyway. I want to marry you because I need you. I've needed you for years, and it won't change for years."

"Better be more than years." Delta grumbled, her fingers playing with the leather on his kutte.

Opie grinned. "Decades. The rest of my life." He lifted up her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes. "Marry me, Delta."

Delta tried to hide it, but the smile spread across her face without her permission. "You better hope I find a dress."

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	23. Chapter 23

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Delta breathed a sigh of relief as she climbed up onto the roof of the clubhouse. After announcing to the club that they were going to get married this weekend, they pulled out all the stops to celebrate club style before the wedding. When she stood up, she found her brother sitting alone, smoking a cigarette. "Is that my big brother already partied out?" She chuckled, wrapping her arms around herself as she moved to sit next to him. She nudged his side when he flipped her off, a grin plastering his face. "C'mon, even Mom and Dad are dry humping downstairs."

"Thank you for that mental image." Jax chuckled before dropping his cigarette on the roof, smashing it with his shoe. "Just a lot to think about. That's all."

"This wouldn't have anything to do with those two prospects you killed today, would it?" Delta asked. When Jax turned to her with wide eyes, she shrugged. "Opie told me. Our open and honest policy that you should probably think about with your next girlfriend." When he didn't crack a smile, she hugged his arm, laying her head on his shoulder. "Stop thinking about him. Tonight is for celebrating."

Jax nodded. "I know. And, I'm happy for you. I really am. It's just," he sighed, shaking his head and staring off at the few city lights of Charming. "Thinking of you and how depressed you were when he was doing that to you." He looked down at his hands. "Mom told me you tried to kill yourself the night of my party."

Delta slid her hand into his. "It was a dark moment in my life. I'm glad I didn't go through with it, despite the fact that things got worse after that." She rested her chin in his shoulder, peering at his profile. "You couldn't have stopped it."

"If I had seen it-"

"No," Delta whispered, shaking her head. "You didn't see anything, because I didn't want you to. I was in high school, under Mom and Dad's supervision, and they had no clue it was going on until I finally told them I was pregnant." She nudged his side again. "I know we didn't get to know her, but Maverick is one of the best things that has happened to me. Yeah, she came from a dark time, and she created another dark time when she died, but I'm still her mom, Jax. I wouldn't trade that for anything."

Jax frowned. "You held her lifeless body, and that was worth it."

"I still got to hold her." Delta breathed, squeezing his hand. "If it weren't for her, I probably would've gone through with killing myself because Hale was horrible. Up until the end, he was a living, breathing nightmare."

Jax finally looked back at her, over his shoulder. "I think this is the first time I've heard you actually talk about her."

Delta smiled softly with a nod. "I'm getting better. Opie is helping. I've been talking about it more." She stood up, tugging on his hand. "C'mon, if you don't want to party with your little sister, at least go see your son in the hospital."

"If you answer one question." Jax bargained, a shit-eating grin giving him away before he could speak. "What color dress? I mean, you can't be walking down the aisle in white."

"Shut up!" Delta gasped with a giggle, shoving his shoulder. "You're an asshole."

* * *

Opie waved goodbye to Jax before turning and seeing his fiancé smirking at him, standing by the bar, and digging her heel into the floor. He slowly walked over to her, taking a swig from his bottle of beer as he did so. "See something you like?"

"Possibly." Delta shrugged.

"Care to show me?" Opie asked, glancing behind him to play along with her.

Delta took the bottle from him and set it on the bar. "How about you take me back to your dorm room, and I'll show you."

* * *

"Fuck, Ope!" Delta panted, lifting up her hips and slamming back down on him with help from his hands on her hips. She felt her hair sticking to the back of her neck and the cool air of the dorm caused goosebumps to break out over her sweaty back. Her hands pressed against the matted hair on Opie's chest, using him to keep up their rhythm. When his hands moved to her breasts, she panted out moans.

Opie grunted when she started working faster on top of him. His thumbs ran over her nipples before he wrapped a hand around the back of her neck, pulling her down to his lips. He groaned into her mouth, his tongue rubbing against hers, as she kept up the pace. Her entire body slid against his, her back arching as his hand glided along her spine. "I fucking love you." He panted before flipping them over.

Delta gasped when Opie pulled out of her and turned her over onto her stomach. Instead of pulling her up onto her knees, he trapped her legs between his and thrusted inside her from behind, keeping her flat on her stomach. The new angle sent her flying over the edge. "God, I love you too." She managed out as Opie continued to thrust into her, building her back up before she even had the chance to come all the way back down.

* * *

Gemma knocked for the third time on Opie's dorm door, glancing back down at her watch. After cleaning up some of the trash from the night before, she wasn't in the mood to wait for her daughter to wake up. Huffing out a breath, she opened the door and clapped her hands loudly as the door slammed shut behind her. "I've knocked. I've called your names. Time to get up."

Opie and Delta woke up, both only covered from the waist down. Opie, finding his bearings quicker, pulled the sheet tightly around him, moving it further up Delta. He could feel the blood heat his cheeks though when he noticed the tent in the sheet between his legs.

Gemma pointed at him as Delta sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Are you going to use that on her or what?"

"Good morning to you too, Mom." Delta grumbled. "What's going on?"

"We have three days to plan your wedding. We need to get ready." Gemma stated before grabbing their clothes off the floor, folding them haphazardly. "So, get moving. I'll be waiting in the office. I expect you out there in twenty minutes whether you decide to use his dick or not."

Opie leaned his head on his hand as Gemma left the room nearly the same way she came in, like a tornado. He looked over at Delta, seeing her groggy eyes finally met his. "Good morning." He smiled before kissing her. "I'll want more than twenty minutes with you."

Delta chuckled and stood up, walking over to his bathroom to freshen up. "Either get a tube sock or think of unpleasant things."

* * *

Gemma laughed as she drove down the highway with Delta chuckling in the passenger seat. "You're going to need to hide that thing until the wedding. If your father sees it before then, he will burn it."

"He should know I'm not going to wear a ballgown." Delta stated.

"I don't think he's expecting that, but I know he won't like the tribute to Cher and Madonna walking down the aisle on his little girl." Gemma smirked, quirking an eyebrow at her daughter. "My bird has more feathers than that dress has fabric."

Delta leaned back in the leather seat, smiling at her mother's comment. "It's one night. Besides, the whole club, including Daddy, still see me as a little girl who grew up with bikers. This will let them know little Delta is all grown up now."

Gemma merged off the highway, seeing the first signs back towards Charming. "Well, you certainly surprised Tiggy yesterday with that kiss in front of everyone. It took me a while to actually get your father to talk to Tig again after that comment he made."

"He wasn't wrong." Delta said, "Ope and I first slept together years ago."

Gemma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, your father thinks you misspoke when you let that little detail slip in front of him." She glanced into her rearview mirror when she saw the flashing lights. "Shit."

"What's wrong?" Delta asked, looking around Charming for any sign of the thing upsetting her mother.

Gemma pointed behind her. "Looks like we have company."

Delta looked out the back window, her eyes widening when she saw the car. "It's Stahl."

"What do you think she wants?" Gemma asked, pulling over to the side of the road. "She can't be teaming up with Hale, can she?"

"I don't know her well enough to figure that out. You'd have to be one sick person to take sides with a rapist." Delta breathed. "But, then again, she doesn't think he's a rapist." They both turned when they heard the tapping on the passenger side window. Stahl was bent over, looking in with a rather nervous expression. "Just get ready to drive if she decides to pull out a weapon."

Delta rolled down her window, keeping her eyes trained on Stahl. Stahl waved in at the two. "Don't worry. You two aren't in trouble."

Gemma leaned over. "Then, why'd you pull us over? We're kind of busy."

"I was hoping to ask you a few questions. . .about Hale." Stahl explained. "You obviously know it's more than just a working relationship. I just want to know what really happened so I don't get blindsided if he decides to go back to you."

"There is no coming back. I don't want him. I didn't want him before." Delta spat. "Whatever he's telling you is bullshit, and I think you already know that."

Stahl bit her lip. "Just, tell me what happened."

Delta crossed her arms over her chest. "Why would you believe anything I have to say?"

"Because, you're pretty straight up when I'm not asking you about the illegal shit your family is involved with." Stahl argued back. "Every time you see Hale, you are like a wild animal trapped in a cage, and I've only seen that in one kind of person."

Delta swallowed. "What person is that?"

"A victim of rape." Stahl stated. She noticed the change in both women's eyes. "I looked at your medical record. You had your daughter nearly two years ago when you were barely sixteen. Let me help you. Whether he claims it's consensual or not, you were a minor. By law, you weren't of age to consent."

Gemma cleared her throat. "Why do you want to help us?"

Stahl shrugged her shoulders. "I've seen Hale's attitude towards women. I have witnessed some disturbing things, and you said some things that only someone who slept with him would know." She saw the discomfort on the eighteen year old's face. "Besides, a little trust could go both ways here. Maybe you could help me with something."

"We can't help you with anything." Delta said, flatly. "Whatever you're investigating, I can assure you the club has nothing to do with it."

"You're willing to lie and risk the danger of Hale again instead of give up a little information about the club." Stahl scoffed. "He raped you and knocked you up. From what your brother said in the station, I can gather that the stress he put you through caused a lot more damage than you losing your baby as well."

Gemma slid her sunglasses onto her nose. "I don't think we have anything further to discuss."

Stahl grabbed the car. "Wait!" She huffed out a breath. "Just tell me. Was he the father of your baby?"

"The answer has been repeated to you a dozen times." Delta said. "You've heard it straight from the Devil's mouth. Why do you think he got a copy of my baby's heartbeat? He told you I aborted his baby. Pretty sure I don't need to tell you anything he hasn't already told you."

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	24. Chapter 24

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Delta huffed out a breath as she hung up her phone at the clubhouse bar. Glancing up at her mother who was still on the phone with a caterer, she grabbed a pen and crossed off the last person on her list. "Thank God, that's over."

Clay tugged playfully on his daughter's ponytail as he walked up behind her, wrapping his arm around her and peering over her shoulder. "What are you two up to? I don't think I've seen either of you in the office."

"We've been getting vendors for the wedding. I just got done with Eddy. He's willing to loan out a bartender that night and booze for a slightly more than reasonable price." Delta sighed, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back against Clay's arm. "With the wedding tomorrow, I guess I can't blame him for throwing a fit over short notice." She looked up at Clay, frowning when she saw a scratch on his jaw. "What happened?"

Clay smirked, glancing up and Gemma and catching her eye. She winked at him before returning her attention back to her phone call. "Nothing to worry about."

Delta fake gagged and shivered slightly. "Gross." She laughed when Clay wrapped both his bear arms around her, nearly cocooning her against his chest. "Daddy, stop. You're being weird." Her laughter squealed out when he started kissing her face. "Okay! I get it. You love your family. I don't need to be smothered."

"You used to love that when you were little." Clay chuckled, pulling back to leave only one arm around her. He watched as she readjusted herself after his near manhandling of her. "You grew up on me, kid. What happened to my daughter who said she was going to break the Teller tradition of getting married as a teenager?"

Delta smiled as she rearranged some of the papers for the wedding. "She changed. Always said I wasn't going to marry a biker either. I surprised myself with that one." She looked back up at her father. "This doesn't change anything. Opie and I are going to start looking at houses once this whole Hale fiasco ends."

Clay scoffed. "I wish that ATF bitch would just leave already. She's just postponing the reaper."

"Alright, the caterer is pulling in a team, and they are going to have everything ready for dinner tomorrow night at seven." Gemma explained, tossing her phone onto the bar counter. She clapped her hands together. "That was the last of them. Everyone knows the place, the time, and the style - leather and lace."

"The cake will look amazing." Delta grinned before Clay sat down beside her. "As long as we keep this as contained as possible, the whole thing should go off without a hitch. The last thing I want is Hale showing up at my wedding."

Clay waved his hand as if it were no big deal. "Don't worry, baby. I got that taken care of." He grinned at the curious look on his daughter's face. "Consider it another wedding present of sorts. It'll be perfect for ya. I'll make sure of it."

They all froze when the top of a police car cruised by the clubhouse windows. Before any of them moved, they heard the boys getting restless outside, tools dropping to the blacktop as they all took notice of the unwanted presence. Gemma glanced at her daughter. "You don't think it's Stahl, do you?"

"Only one way to find out." Delta sighed as she stood up and walked out of the clubhouse, her parents hovering closely behind her. All the boys were on their feet, staring daggers at the cop leaning against his car in the middle of the TM lot. "Fucking Hale."

Jax walked up from behind her, resting his hand on her hip. "Go back inside. I can handle him."

Delta continued to stare back at Hale. "He isn't here for you." Jax grabbed her wrist in a warning, but she quickly shook it off as she walked up as close as she was willing to Hale. She crossed her arms over her chest and felt her stomach drop seeing the vein in his forehead protrude underneath his skin. "Did you just come here to feel bikers visions of your painful death, or what?"

Hale's jaw clenched, his voice low as he nearly spat at her. "I just talked to Stahl. She seems to think our relationship was not a relationship." He cocked his head to the side, cracking his neck. "What did you tell her?"

Delta scoffed with a smirk. "I didn't tell her shit. She figured it out from your sick perversions." She cocked an eyebrow at him. "What? She won't open her legs for you anymore now that she knows what a sick bastard you really are."

"Watch your mouth!" Hale barked at her.

"Watch your back." Delta replied calmly. She saw Tiggy's hands shaking out of the corner of her eye, his one leg bouncing slightly, ready to pounce on command. "Believe me. The last thing you should worry about is whether or not you find a hole for your stub." She jutted her chin to his car. "Get out of here."

Hale took a step towards her, finger pointed fiercely. He froze all movement though when nearly every club member took out their gun and pointed it at him. He glared at Delta, his own hand shaking with anger. "I'm coming for you."

"You'd die before you even tried anything." Delta argued back. "If not by the club, then by me."

Hale's anger seemed to vanish as a laugh erupted from his lips. "You? Oh, that's rich. Last time you and I were together, you couldn't even speak let alone kill me." His smile turned dark, making Delta's skin crawl. "You couldn't kill me even if I was hog tied and covered in gasoline."

"That could be arranged." Tiggy called out innocently.

"You're nothing without your club." Hale threw at her. "You were nothing back then, and your nothing now. The only chance you have is me. I made you a mother once, and I'll do it again. I'll make you a wife too."

Delta rested her hands on her hips, standing her ground. "Place is already taken, Hale. I won't even be yours." She took another step towards him, taunting his with the mere inches between them. "And, just so you know. You didn't make me a mother, and you weren't my first." She smirked when the vein in his forehead made its appearance again. "Now, get in your car and drive away before you get killed."

Hale fumed as she turned and walked away. "What? You wanted to kill me so badly, but you're walking away to leave me with these cavemen bikers."

"Oh, Hale, what I want to do to you. . .I'd need a lot more than just your car, concrete, and a club of men who want nothing more than to see your tortured." Delta smirked. She gave him a quick wave. "Say hi to June for me. You know, since we're such close pals and all."

* * *

"You are playing with fire. I hope you know that." Opie stated as he pulled Delta into his lap after she returned from the kitchen with his beer. "What you did today. . .it was brave and hot as hell to watch, but it was also stupid. You're just egging him on."

Delta rolled her eyes. "I could move to Antartica and become a nun for all he cares. He'd still come after me. Might as well enjoy torturing him while I know he won't come after me." She tugged on the hairs of his beard playfully, smiling when he tried pulling away. "Are you leaving this for the wedding?"

Opie scratched his jaw. "I'll trim it." He kissed the corner of her jaw before meeting her eyes. "You're absolutely sure you want this, right? You aren't doing this just to get away from Hale or prove some point to yourself."

"Why would I do that?" Delta asked with a slight frown. "I'd think you'd know by now I don't do anything I don't want to do."

"Well, you're about to." Clay said, tromping into the living room where they were lounged. "Tiggy is watching you tonight. Can't have the bride and groom together the night before the wedding." He grinned when both of them groaned in displeasure at the idea that they were going to follow some old maid's tradition. "I won't budge on this one."

"Fine." Opie grunted before standing up, taking Delta with him and setting her onto her feet. He shook his head, smirking when he saw Tiggy stuffing his face in the kitchen. Leaning over, he kissed the crown of Delta's head. "Good luck, baby."

Clay patted Opie's shoulder as he passed to leave out the back door. Looking back to his daughter, he smirked. "You can make that face all you want. I'm not changing my mind." He wrapped his arm around her neck, pulling her against his chest. "C'mon, we can mess with Tig tonight and make your mother mad at him."

Delta chuckled into his chest. "I don't need him pissing his pants from nightmares in my room." She glanced out at Tiggy, watching as he and Gemma talked back and forth as she got dinner ready. "But, I think we could find some plastic sheets."

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	25. Chapter 25

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Delta chuckled on her bed as she watched Tiggy try to maneuver on the air mattress. Every time he tried to turn the slightest bit, the air mattress would nearly fold in on him, nearly knocking him off onto the floor. His pillow would flip over underneath him and his blanket would tangle in his legs, causing him to readjust on the air mattress all over again. "I told you that the mattress need more air."

"I need a real bed. That's what I need." Tiggy retorted before collapsing onto his back and giving up on getting comfortable. "You should be sleeping anyway. You have a big day tomorrow. Never thought I'd see you marrying a club member if I'm being honest."

"You're not the only one." Delta smiled, looking at him over the edge of her bed. "There are just some things you can't help."

Tiggy clasped his hands behind his head, gazing up at the ceiling. "So, why did you decide to even go out with Ope if you knew you didn't want to be with him? Isn't that what women do? Date so they can find their future husband."

Delta giggled. "I agreed to go out with him for the same reasons you are nice to girls. I wanted to fuck him." She ran a hand through her hair, turning onto her back as well. "I don't know when it changed. One day, we were sneaking around. The next, he's pushing through with his divorce so we can be together."

"But, he didn't get divorced the first time he and Donna split." Tiggy stated, a frown taking over his features.

Delta sighed. "I made him go back to Donna." She bit her lip, closing her eyes just thinking about the last night her and Opie were together before he left to go back to his wife and kids. "I certainly wasn't ready for a serious relationship. That's all Ope wanted. He still loved Donna, and she wanted a normal husband. They had kids together. I couldn't destroy a family. I was still in high school with not a clue as to where I was going."

Tiggy yawned, stretching out and closing his eyes. "How did you two get back together after he left Donna for good?"

Delta smiled. "Talking about crow eaters." She let out a small chuckle. "Honestly, I could talk to him about anything. I don't know if it's because we grew up together or what, but I don't hide anything from him. Well, not anymore at least. We've seen each other at our bests and at our worsts, and I'd rather spend my time with him on his worst days than with anybody else on their best days."

She looked out the window beside her bed, seeing the moon shining down on the front lawn below. "I don't know what I'd do without him, and that scares the shit out of me. I've never been a person who needed anyone around to just be there, but, even now, I can't wait to see him." She sighed. "Have you ever felt that way, Tiggy?" When she didn't hear anything from him, she peered over the edge of the bed. "Tiggy?"

Tiggy hummed softly before a loud snore erupted from the back of his throat, causing Delta to giggle into her pillow. He turned on the mattress, his pillow flipping over into his arms before he hugged it to his chest.

Slipping from her bed, Delta snuck out of her bedroom and headed downstairs to get away from the noise. She knew what his snoring was like during her nights at the clubhouse. Sleeping a foot from him would only prove to be useless. When she reached the bottom of the staircase, her eyes darted towards the kitchen lights showing Gemma sitting at the small table. She slowly padded over. "What are you doing?"

Gemma looked over her shoulder to see Delta in her pajamas. She gave her daughter a small smile and gestured to the seat beside her. "What am I doing? What about you? You're the one getting married tomorrow. You should be asleep. The bride doesn't need to have bags under her eyes."

"Tiggy set up camp in my room. There is no way I can sleep soundly in there." Delta chuckled before sitting down beside her mother and seeing the photo albums spread out on the table. "What are these?"

"Memories from when I was your age. . .and a little older." Gemma smirked before tilting an album to show Delta. "That's the day I met your father. He didn't know I was sleeping with JT yet and nearly begged me to go up to his room."

Delta laughed before she pulled on another album. "How fitting. This is your wedding to Daddy."

Gemma smiled fondly at the pictures. "I was pregnant with you then. About four months I'd say. Couldn't tell then though." She looked back to the album in her own hands. "I looked like an elephant when I married JT."

"Well, I guess we can say I broke one family tradition." Delta smiled. "I'm not pregnant for my wedding."

"Which I'm happy about. I don't think any little girl out there dreams of being pregnant at her own wedding. I know I didn't." Gemma stated before gazing over at her daughter. "How are you doing with everything?"

"With which everything?" Delta asked. "With Hale everything or with the wedding everything."

Gemma shrugged. "Pick one."

Delta smiled and closed the album in her hand, pushing it aside gently. "Never thought I'd be excited to marry a biker." She rested her arms on the table, leaning against it. "As long as Hale doesn't show up, it should be a great day. As much as I'm against the idea of bailing right now, it will be nice to have a break from this drama for a week or two. I think Ope mentioned something about riding to Vegas for a couple days."

"That sounds like the perfect trip for you." Gemma said with a small smile. She brushed back some of Delta's hair. "I didn't think it'd be this hard. I've always wanted you to have your own life and have some of the experiences I've had. Now that it's here, it's a hard pill to swallow. Not that I don't love Opie. My God, he's like another son to your father and I."

Delta slid her hand into Gemma's and nodded. "I know what you mean." She shrugged with a small chuckle. "But all these years, you've worried about me leaving Charming and never coming back. Now, you're never getting rid of me."

Gemma laughed and pressed her forehead to Delta's. "You'll still find a way to make it out of Charming. We won't all be here forever. You'll come back, but I know you won't stay here. Even I didn't stay here. I left and came back with an army of bikers. Knowing you, you'll come back with a team of attorneys who can get the club out of trouble."

"It's not a half bad idea." Delta shrugged.

"You're smart like that." Gemma whispered before kissing Delta gently. "I know you'll do right by the family and right by the club, no matter where you are." She caressed Delta's cheek before pulling back. "C'mon, we need to get some sleep tonight."

Delta pointed towards the living room. "I'll probably crash on the couch. Tiggy will keep me up all night with his snoring if I go back upstairs."

Gemma stood from her chair and held out her hand. "I'll join you."

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	26. Chapter 26

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"I know what happened before. That's why I told you not to fuck it up this time." Clay barked, effectively waking up both Gemma and Delta in the living room.

"Club meeting." Gemma whispered to her daughter, seeing the club gathered in their dining room. She stood from the recliner, resting her hands on her back to stretch out the muscles, before motioning for Delta to follow her. "Go change. We need to go up and start decorating for the reception."

Delta glanced towards the dining room, seeing her father grip his chair with white knuckles as his head hung down. He was seething. His eyes ablaze and teeth gritted. Even his veins appeared three times larger than any vein should be. The boys stood around the table, all showing some sign of anger or frustration. Some of them even had bloodied knuckles or scabbed faces. Something happened the night before. It didn't matter how much she wanted to go over there though. It was a club meeting.

Before she could move towards the stairs, Gemma had grabbed her hand and started pulling her to the staircase. "C'mon, we need to get going." She breathed out, pushing Delta ahead of her before following her up to their rooms.

* * *

Gemma pulled her shirt over her head, tucking it under the belt of her jeans when Clay walked in. His feet shuffled on the floor loudly before he stopped in the doorway. She didn't even turn to look at him, knowing his frustration from the night would be exhaustion right now. "Should I even ask?"

"Like you would ever settle for not knowing." Clay huffed out before he sat on the bed, his large frame causing the rest of the mattress to rise. He watched Gemma busy herself around the room getting ready. He admired her figure, briefly thinking about hauling her into the bed with him before remember what today held. "Hale got onto the lot again last night."

"I thought somebody was watching his house." Gemma said after a moment of complete shock. Her body froze in place when Clay's words registered. "Somebody is supposed to be counting his hand-jobs if that's what it takes. How the hell did he get to the lot in the first place?"

Clay shook his head. "Once the prospects were taken care of, nobody thought to replace them at Hale's. The guys guarding the gate saw him drive by, but it was five seconds. He must've parked around the corner and gotten in some other way."

Gemma finally turned to her husband, seeing the agony in his eyes. "What did he leave this time?"

"Unfortunately, he didn't leave anything." Clay breathed, "not that I could handle more of his souvenirs." He ran his fingers through his short hair before meeting Gemma's eyes again. "The car Delta has been working on. . .Hale lit it on fire. He torched it. There's not a part on that thing that can be salvaged."

"Shit." Gemma whispered through gritted teeth. She dropped down next to Clay, causing both of them to sway slightly on the mattress. "She loved that car more than any other person most days. She can't find out today."

Clay nodded in agreement. "She won't find out ever. She and Opie leave tonight after their ceremony for two weeks. The guys and I are going to search for the parts she had and try to leave it the way she did. Hopefully, we can find everything in time. Juice already found some frames at the junkyard. He and Chibbs are heading over now." He kissed Gemma's cheek. "We'll get it sorted out, Momma."

Gemma sighed, leaning against him. "We better. Otherwise, it will be another thing he took away from her." She stood from the bed and adjusted her hair with a glance in the mirror. "But, enough of that for now. Today is an exciting day. It's our daughter's wedding day, and I'll be damned if anybody ruins it for her." She turned to Clay. "How do I look?"

"Un-fucking-believable." Clay smirked before laying down on the bed. "If I weren't so tired, I'd show you."

"Always a charmer." Gemma chuckled and pecked his lips. "We should be back in a couple hours. Where were Jax and Opie this morning? I didn't see them in the dining room when Delta and I woke."

Clay pushed back onto the pillows. "I told Jax to keep Ope away from the clubhouse while we disposed of the torched car. I guess Opie had an appointment with a realtor this morning about houses in the area. He doesn't want to bring Delta home to the clubhouse after their honeymoon. I can't blame him. I remember the night you and JT came back from yours. All whooping and cheering for JT. If I didn't have such a hard-on for you, I probably would've enjoyed saying some of the things I did that night."

"The guys did the same thing when we got back from our honeymoon. They nearly destroyed the house." Gemma smirked, "but a house. . ."

Clay nodded. "My thoughts exactly."

* * *

Delta laid out the last table setting before finding her mother by the front stage, twisting white and gold streamers and taping them against the lip of it. Jax was carrying in the booze with help from the bartenders, and the caterers were setting up shop as best they could after the short notice they had given them about the wedding. She smiled softly when Gemma walked up behind her and wrapped her arms around her. "It's beautiful, baby. Just what you wanted, right?"

"Well, I wasn't picturing this day since I was little, but, yeah, this is what I wanted." Delta smiled, reaching up and squeezing her mother's arms reassuringly. "It feels weird - getting married. I never really dreamed of this day."

Gemma chuckled. "I'm well aware. You dreamed of the day you would get out of this town." She brushed back some of her hair, gazing at her profile. "Do you still want that? To leave here and explore?"

Delta shrugged. "I still want to explore, but this is home." She rested her head against Gemma's. "Opie and I could hop on the bike for a weekend and just drive up the interstate, and still be back Sunday night for your family dinners. Honestly, I'm happy with that, Mom."

"Then, I'm glad." Gemma stated before her eyes caught sight of someone she never expected to show up. "What is she doing here?"

Delta rolled her eyes seeing Tara walk up to the bar where Jax stood behind, organizing the cans and bottles of beer and liquor. "Jax asked if he could bring her as a date. I couldn't exactly say no. He's still reeling over the idea that Ope and I are together." She ran her hand through her long brown hair. "I'd rather not talk about her. I still have to get ready. The wedding is in three hours and- Stahl followed Tara here."

Gemma's eyes widened seeing the federal agent walk up underneath the tent. When Jax moved to pull out his gun, she gave him a side glance, telling him to cool it for the moment being. Stahl gazed around the tent as she approached the two women. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, saw the doctor friend of your son's coming this way and decided to see where she was going." Stahl shrugged. "So, I drove behind her and got right out. She didn't even realize she was being followed. I don't think you trained her well enough yet. Looks like a nice little spot for your wedding."

"You weren't invited." Delta stated bluntly.

Stahl grinned as she sat down at one of the tables. "I don't think that's the right thing to say considering I could ruin your big day with one phone call to Hale."

"I could ruin your day with one skateboard." Gemma retorted. "If you so much as reach for your phone, I'll make sure you're dialing with your spleen."

"Ouch." Stahl chuckled. "I'm not looking to ruin your day, but I need something from you. Don't make me do something I don't want to do. I know you know how horrible that feeling is, Delta."

Gemma reached down and yanked the knife from Delta's boot before pressing it against the column of Stahl's throat, causing the woman to lean back as far as she could with wide eyes. She smirked down at her, words laced with venom. "I'm really sick of you and your boyfriend threatening my daughter, so let me make this clear to you. If you breath a word of this to him, you're dead. If I find you or him anywhere near here, you're dead. If you so much as step foot on my property or near my daughter again, I will shoot you where you stand and bury you in my flower garden. Do you understand me?"

Stahl gulped, but tried to keep her cool attitude about the situation. "You wouldn't kill me."

"But, I would." Jax stated, his voice dark and low, almost echoing with the seriousness in his tone. He pressed the barrel of his gun against the back of Stahl's head. The sweat started to collect along her forehead and her neck, her eyes now wide with fear. "I could kill you before you know I'm there, but, don't worry, I'll make sure you know I'm there to kill you."

Delta stepped up beside her, wrapping her arms around his free hand and leaning slightly against his back. She peered at Stahl, jutting her chin back towards the car she arrived in. "I think it's time you go. Unless you plan on telling Hale. . ."

Stahl looked back at Delta and gritted her teeth. "He won't hear a thing from me."

Jax pressed the barrel harder into her skull. "Or from anybody else."

"Or from anybody else." Stahl repeated, frustrated her loophole had been found. "I'll keep him away from here."

Jax pulled the gun away as Gemma removed the knife from her throat. "We've got that part covered." He grabbed her arm and lifted her up out of the chair. "Now, get out." They all watched as Stahl walked backwards out of the tent, keeping her eyes on them until she was out of their sight. "You two should get back to the house too and get ready. Guests will be arriving in a couple hours."

Delta squeezed his arm. "What exactly did you have planned for Hale?"

Jax smirked before kissing her cheek. "Consider it your wedding present."

"You didn't get me a real wedding present?" Delta asked, eyebrows raised at her older brother.

Jax chuckled and wrapped his arms around her. "Alright, part of your wedding present." He playfully pushed her towards the tent opening with Gemma. "Just get going. Opie has waited for you long enough. I won't be the reason he has to wait longer."

Delta shrugged her shoulders with a smile. "I'm worth the wait."

Gemma grinned at her two children before resting her hands on her daughter's shoulders and guiding her towards the entrance. "I can't imagine what you two will say to each other tonight." She glanced back at Jax. "Keep an eye out."

Jax smiled until the two left the tent ant turned to Tara. "You didn't notice her following you?"

"I swear, Jax. I wouldn't have led her here on purpose." Tara stated, feeling guilty about the exchange that just went down. She hated this side of Jax, and this exchange was caused by her lack of attention."You know I would never want to cause trouble. It turned out alright. She said she wouldn't tell Hale about the wedding."

"Yeah, she did," Jax breathed before shoving his gun back into his jeans, "but I'm not going to leave that up to chance."

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	27. Chapter 27

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Gemma stepped out of her bedroom to find Clay climbing up the last of the stairs. She quickly moved to him, not wanting Delta to hear them talking while she was getting ready on the other side of the door. "Hey, did you talk to Jax?"

"Yes, he and a couple of the boys are finishing up Hale's distraction." Clay sighed, scratching the back of his head. "How is she doing?"

"She looks like a bride." Gemma smiled, inhaling deeply. "She's happy - the way she deserves to be happy. Please, tell me that she'll stay that way today."

Clay grinned before pecking her lips, his chest rumbling with his voice. "I'll slit the throat of anyone who tries to change it." He glanced back at the closed door to their bedroom. "Did you talk to her about her future? Up until a month ago, we were preparing to see her only on the holidays. Now, she's following your footsteps which she has spent years rebelling against."

"She's says that she's content." Gemma breathed with a shrug. She remembered the first time Delta had stated she didn't want to be a club wife. Her initial reaction had been to change her daughter's mind. Her need to have her kids close trumping the future that her daughter didn't want. But as she reflected on her own life, she could see where Delta had been coming from. Despite how guarded her and Clay had tried to keep her from what really happened in the club, being the patriarch of the members and the matriarch of the club and business had left their daughter more exposed to the life than they realized.

Soon, Gemma didn't want the club life for her daughter.

She knew the pains of being an old lady. The boys will be boys rules that had left her blind-sided by both husbands. Jax was a man of the club. The rules favored him. But, Delta would not be looked at the same. Her whole life was spent being Clay Morrow's daughter. Her daughter. The club President's daughter. Now, Opie's wife was going to be added to that list.

And, Opie wasn't like every other club member.

"With Opie by her side, I think she'll have the best life she could possibly have to stay in the club." Gemma nodded. It wasn't the best life Delta could live, but it was the best in the situation provided. As much heartache as she would face, she knew that Delta would never regret her decision. She was too tough as nails and too stubborn to ever settle for anything she wasn't one hundred percent certain about. Her daughter's feelings for Opie were clearly reciprocated. "Opie will make sure of that."

Clay grinned before their bedroom door opened and Delta walked out in her wedding dress. "Wow." He felt his chest constrict as Delta laughed and teared up under his gaze. "As gorgeous as you look, where is the rest of the dress?"

* * *

Jax sat on his bike next to Opie, looking down the hill at the main street through Charming. It was bright, sunny, and perfect for his baby sister's big day. "You guys picked a good day to do this."

"You aren't going to talk to me about the weather before my wedding, are you?" Opie asked with a grin, laying back on the leather seat under him. "You at least told me not to be stupid before my marriage to Donna."

Jax snorted out a laugh, remembering Opie's nervousness before the wedding. It was quick to get on Jax's nerves, so he was more 'rub some dirt on it' than the traditional pep talk one would give his best friend before his wedding. "Well, I could say the same now." He looked back into town, watching the small run-down police station. "Man, I don't even know what to tell you. You're my best friend, and you're marrying my sister. If you hurt her, I have to kill you, and that wasn't something I was ever planning on doing. If she hurts you, she's still my family. My blood. I can't be mad at her."

Opie sat up on his bike, gazing over at Jax behind his sunglasses. He smiled though. It was a day he had waited too long for not to have a constant buzz of joy gearing him up. "Well, that's one way to look at it. I don't think it'll turn out that way though."

"Really?" Jax asked with a smirk.

"I wouldn't have started anything with Delta if I didn't have deep, genuine feelings for her." Opie admitted. "Man, I loved her even when I was married to Donna. I've waited a long time to make her mine. I'm not going to fuck it up. She means too much to me, brother."

Jax nodded his head once. "I still haven't heard how this whole thing with you two even got started. I mean, how could it have started? We've known each other since we were kids playing in the sandbox. Hell, Delta was born when we were in the sandbox."

Opie shrugged his shoulders. "Jax, I don't even know how to describe it to you." He huffed out a breath, crossing his arms over his chest. "I can't even tell you exactly when it happened. It just did. One day, I turned to look at her and had to do a double take. I almost didn't recognize her, and I looked at her every day. Suddenly, she wasn't just your sister or just Delta or just Clay's daughter. I looked at her and I wanted to be apart of her world. I knew her like the back of my hand growing up with you."

"One night at a club party, your parents were going at it in Clay's dorm. You and Wendy I think had just started dating. So, you were either fighting or fucking." Opie stated. Jax smirked, nodding in agreement. "Crow eaters were hanging off my arms, but all I wanted to do was stand next to Delta and maybe have a drink. We had that drink all right. She got tired, and I offered to share my dorm with her. . .it didn't take long for things to escalate."

"And, it was just her. It felt like the whole world stopped or that my life could end right there and I'd be content." Opie rambled. "With Donna, it was always as if the outside world was threatening to break us. Delta just makes everything else go away. Even in the middle of my divorce, when Donna threatened to take away my kids, all my worries faded outside the door when I was with her."

Jax shifted his weight on the bike, allowing it to rest completely on the kickstand. "So, what happened? Why did you go back to Donna?"

Opie sighed. Clearly, he had struggled with his decision and continued to let it haunt him. "Donna was willing to reconcile for the kids as long as I got out of the club. I told Delta as a joke. I didn't want to leave the club, and she knew I loved her. But, she told me to go back. If I could give my kids a happy family, she wanted that for them." He shook his head. "The worst decision I've ever made. I only went back to Donna because Delta said she couldn't continue running around with me. She was fifteen at the time. She wasn't ready for a steady relationship, especially not with someone who had two kids. I didn't blame her. It would have freaked me out too."

"You left Donna when the club found out about Hale." Jax stated, mostly to himself to remind himself of the timeline of things that happened.

Opie winced at the mention of the name. "Yeah, I did." He clenched hands into fists, knuckles turning white. "I was miserable without the club, and Donna was hounding me about the bills we couldn't pay. The bills we paid for with the money from the club. When you called and told me what happened, I packed up my shit and left that night. I was still in love with her, Jax. I was in love with her and I left her."

Jax could feel the pain in Opie's voice, and he knew the burn of it well. "Man, none of us knew what was happening. You didn't cause it."

"I didn't stop it either." Opie whispered before seeing Hale walk out of the station with Stahl on his heels. He slipped his sunglasses over his eyes and used his heel to push back his own kickstand. "And as long as I'm around, I won't let anything happen to her."

 **Please review! Thanks for being patient. I know it's been a while. I've been caught in writer's block on where to take this story. I know how I want to end it, but the journey to that point is still undecided. Luckily, I got a spark of inspiration tonight.**


	28. Chapter 28

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Tig grinned like a crazy man who just found gold, bouncing around the club lot with the gallons of gas surrounding him in small red gas cans. Bobby and Clay watched his madness unravel as Clay stood beside him with his new disposable cell in hand. "Yes, that's right. Something is happening down at that old barn. That God awful biker gang is here, and they are causing a ruckus. They shouldn't even be on that property anyway." He grinned when he saw Jax and Opie coming down the street. "Thank you so much."

Gemma smirked at the triumphant smile on her husband's face. "Fell for it?"

"Hale reassured me that he would handle it personally with Agent Stahl." Clay stated before wrapping his arm around her waist. "In a place with no cell service. Tig siphoned enough gas to leave them stranded there. If their car does start up again or they fill up with gas, the prospects are out there to make sure they don't leave."

"I also cut wires to their radio!" Tig shouted with glee when Jax and Opie parked alongside him and cut off their engines.

Jax chuckled as he approached Clay and Gemma. "Hale and Stahl were just leaving. Are the prospects ready?"

Clay nodded. "They're prepared to slash tires if need be." He jutted his chin towards Opie. "You got a minute?"

Opie waited until Gemma murmured something about heading up to help Delta with final arrangements and motioned for Jax to follow before nodding to Clay. "Yeah, I've got a minute. I do have a wedding to get to though."

"I wouldn't dream of keeping you away." Clay chuckled before gesturing for them to move away from the other club members. Opie allowed Clay to lead them, stopping just between the office and the dancing mania that had taken over Tig. "Look, I ain't gonna threaten to kill you if you hurt my baby girl or anything like that. Pretty sure you know that and Jax has probably given you the big brother talk."

"Kinda." Opie nodded.

Clay huffed out a breath. "You know that I would do anything for this club, because that's how much I love this club, the brotherhood. That love, it doesn't compare to the love I have for my little girl. I know you'll do right by her, better than Jax and I have done by our ladies. I just want to know that you won't make her an old lady, that you won't take away all of her dreams and wishes because of this club. There are more ex-wives to this club than current ones. I wouldn't tell any other brother of mine to do this, but I'm telling you. My daughter has a love for the club. She wouldn't betray it, but I need to know you won't betray her."

Opie shoved his hands into his pockets, his eyes moving from the pavement between them to meet the shades covering the President's eyes. "I'd die before I do anything to hurt her. She's the only future I have, Clay. I've been waiting what feels like a lifetime to be with her. I'm not going to fuck it up."

Clay smiled. "Good." He clapped the leather covered shoulder before smirking. "You better go change then. Don't want to keep you waiting too much longer."

* * *

Gemma chuckled seeing her son walk towards her. "Nice to see you wear your best flannel for your sister's wedding."

"I didn't want to upstage Opie on his big day." Jax grinned before tugging on his kutte. "Where's my baby sister?"

"I was just about to check on her. When she comes out, I know you're going to say something stupid. Just be prepared to make it up to her." Gemma stated before pecking his cheek. "You may not think so, but you will." Jax chuckled with a shake of his head as he watched Gemma go back to the white tent where his sister was waiting for the ceremony to start.

"Delta, your future husband is anxiously waiting at the alter for you." Gemma smiled before walking around the corner of the tent and seeing Delta with a leather jacket over her wedding dress. "You look beautiful, baby."

Delta grinned and hugged Gemma tightly. "Thanks, Mom." She chuckled and pulled back, glancing down at herself. "I never thought I'd be doing this. God, I feel insane."

Gemma laughed. "That's how I felt when I married your father." She glanced back down at the wedding dress, cocktail length, and basically see through other than the white lace that covered it strategically. No one in the club would think about her as the baby for a long time once they saw her. "But, you're happy though, right?"

"I don't think I've ever been happier." Delta admitted. "I want nothing more than this." She grinned so wide that Gemma found herself overwhelmed with happiness. "Delta Morrow-Winston. Signing my checks are going to be a bitch now."

The two laughed and held hands, letting the laughter subside and silence wash over them. Gemma quickly brought her daughter back in for another hug, holding her tightly against her. "I love you, baby. I don't care who's ring is on your finger. You're still mine, and you still have a place."

"I love you too, Mom." Delta whispered before they heard someone clear their throat.

The two turned to find Clay and Jax standing in the tent entrance expectantly. When the two stepped apart, Jax's eyes widened seeing the lack of material on his little sister. "You're getting married today, not making a porno." He blushed hotly when Clay whacked his arm, Gemma shooting him a look. "Sorry."

Delta shrugged. "It's my wedding day. I could be doing both today." She smirked when her brother chuckled. "Now, let's get married."

* * *

Jax rolled his eyes when he and Tig walked down the aisle together as Best Man and Man of Honor. He had forgotten his sister's lack of female friends inside or outside of the club, leaving her strange bond with the dirtiest-minded member of their charter. His annoyance though was short lived though when he saw Opie trying not to crack up next to the officiate. He was glad when he and Tig took their separate places on opposite ends of the alter.

Opie's eyes fled back to where he first spotted the odd couple and nearly lost his mind when he saw Delta being escorted to him with Clay and Gemma on either side of her. He grinned, feeling the moisture collect in his eyes, as he ran a hand down his face. He couldn't believe that the girl walking down the aisle to him was about to be his wife. Her tastes on normal traditions was clear to everyone. The dress alone was rique, even for a club member's wife. The leather jacket that wrapped around her was made nicer than his kutte. Instead of white heels or sandals, her favorite pair of black leather boots with steel toes and a chain running underneath the heel were on her feet. No veil either. Simply long brown hair with the natural curl at the end. A little more makeup than normal, but he was never more grateful for her and her stubbornness to be herself.

He stepped down and held out his hand to Delta when she, Clay, and Gemma came forward. "Hey."

"Hey." She grinned back in a whisper before Clay and Gemma each kissed her cheek and gave her a hug. Her hand slipped into his as they took their seats, and she joined him up on the alter.

Opie squeezed her hand as a few words were said about the sanctity of marriage and how he and Delta were joining together on this day to become one. It was when they were allowed to begin their vows that he turned his attention back to Delta, holding both her hands in his.

"I'm not going to spew the traditional vows normally said. You know that I already mean them." Opie stated, smiling when Delta chuckled. "There are a lot of things I want to say to you though, too many to say all in these vows. But, I promise that I'll try to tell you everything I want to say over the many years of our marriage to come. I've waited years for this day, and you made it perfect the moment you said you would marry me. So, without getting too mushy, I have one more promise." He glanced to his club members, blushing himself. "I promise to treat you as good as my leather and ride you as much as my Harley."

Delta laughed as a few club members whooped and hollered, but her focus quickly turned back to Opie. "There you go again, knowing me better than anybody else. You know I never planned on this life, but now I couldn't imagine any life without you. You take away all my worries everyday, even before I tell you about them, and I love you so fucking much for that. And, I promise to treat you as good as my leather and ride you as much as your Harley."

Opie grinned before cupping her face in his hands and kissing her. He could faintly hear the cheers and laughter of his brothers and their old ladies, but he didn't care. In that moment, his focus was on the pride of his life, his new wife.

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	29. Chapter 29

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"What the hell is that? You aren't putting that on the head table, let alone serving it to my daughter." Gemma spat, turning one of the servers back to the kitchen when she caught sight of the plate in his hand. She huffed out a breath and turned to see Jax smirking at her. "Okay, I'm not stressing out. I'm supervising."

"For you, those two mean the same thing." Jax chuckled before kissing her cheek. "Go enjoy your daughter's wedding. I'll get Tara to do this. She still feels bad about leading Stahl here this morning." He saw the disdain on his mother's face and gently prodded her towards the front of the tent where Clay was waiting next to her empty seat. "Go. We've got this covered. Just relax."

Gemma relented, squeezing her son's arm in thanks, before making her way through the maze of tables. A few polite nods and hellos to the club business guests and a couple promises to talk later to a few close club members led her back to her table where Clay held out her seat next to Piney and Opie's mother, Mary. Despite Mary's rude comments about her own son and the club, Gemma held her tongue as best she could. The last thing she wanted for Delta on her wedding day was drama, especially family drama. Besides, she wouldn't see her mother-in-law all that much anyway, and Gemma smiled to herself realizing that Delta had probably thought of that too.

"Look at our girl, Gem." Clay murmured into her ear when they were both seated. He was grinning, laid-back. A rare sight on the club President.

Her eyes fled up to the head table where Opie and Delta sat. On a day that her daughter never thought would be possible or even want possible, where she would marry into the club at the age of eighteen, she was beaming. Her smile was so wide; Gemma thought her face might be sore the next few days just from overworking the muscles. In utter bliss, her daughter stared up at her husband with all the love in the world as he whispered something to her. The same love was found in his eyes, and he couldn't adore her more in that moment even if he tried. Every person here today could honestly say it was a marriage to survive.

Gemma leaned her head against Clay's, both of them looking up at their daughter. "She looks happy, baby. She made the right choice."

"She sure did." Clay breathed before kissing his wife's temple. He grinned into her hair. "But, I made a better one choosing you."

"You bet your ass you did." Gemma chuckled before pecking his lips. She jutted her chin back up towards Delta. "You see the glow, don't you?"

Clay nodded before their plates were set down in front of them. "Has she mentioned anything yet? I've seen it the past few days, but I didn't want to ruin the surprise if she was planning something special."

Gemma sipped at her water with a shake of her head. "I don't think she does. She said she was breaking Teller tradition by getting married without child. So, I'm assuming she doesn't have a clue just how closely she is following tradition." She picked up her napkin and laid it down on her lap, discretely poking her elbow into her husband's side. "I'd say we're extending the family, Grandpa."

* * *

"Four different flavors. You're killing me, sis." Jax groaned, resting a hand on his full stomach after sample each wedding cake flavor that had been laid out for everyone. "You know I can't half ass these things. Ope is already spoiling you with all this."

Delta laughed as Opie wrapped his arm around her, holding her closer to him. "The baker owed me a favor. The cake was all my own doing." She leaned over and shoved his side. "You didn't have to grab all four. We're going to have plenty left over to last us for a few weeks. Ope and I will be gone, so the cake is basically yours."

Opie grinned and kissed her forehead. "The cake is going to the club kitchen. It will be a hazard once the afterparty happens tonight." He clapped Jax's shoulder. "But, thanks, man. You really helped out with today, and we're grateful."

Jax rubbed his hands together. "I'll expect my thanks in souvenirs from wherever you two go. But, nothing tacky and obvious tourist like those I heart New York t-shirts." He leaned back in his chair. "Where are you two going anyway?"

"We're letting the road decide." Delta rolled her eyes. She pecked Opie's lips before standing from her chair. "The father-daughter dance should start soon, and we need to thank all these people for coming. Don't stay too long."

"Whipped!" Jax burst with laughter when Opie started to push back in his seat.

Opie smirked and messed with Jax's hair. "At least, I'm getting laid on a regular basis, and I know it's clean."

* * *

"I'm so happy for you two!" Gemma gushed, half hugging half hanging off of her daughter. "And, you're so beautiful. Opie, you better treat my girl right tonight when you ride her, because I will be asking for performance evaluations."

"She's drunk." Delta laughed as she hugged her mother, looking back at her father who had wisely stayed pretty sober. He could also drink a lot more before he showed his drunkness. "Mom, I love you, but I can't carry you."

Clay chuckled and picked up Gemma. "C'mon, baby, it's time to go home." He leaned over and kissed his daughter's cheek. "You two are coming over for present opening tomorrow morning before you head out, right?"

"Yeah, we should be by around nine. I don't think anyone will be up before then." Delta stated before squeezing his arm. "Thanks for everything, Daddy." She watched him grin before walking away with a mumbling Gemma towards her car. She turned back to Opie, waiting by his bike, with his keys dangling on his finger. "Where are we going?"

Opie wrapped his fingers around the keys. "I've got a surprise for you."

* * *

Opie pulled up to the house he closed on earlier that morning. He cut off the engine and smiled when Delta climbed off the bike, too in awe to even take off her helmet. He quickly put the bike on it's stand before taking off his helmet and helping her with hers. "It's a four bedroom, three and a half bath with a basement. Two car garage, big enough for a workbench as you can see. It resembles your parents' house style wise, but the layout is a little different. Overall, it felt like a place we could spend forever in, you and me."

"You put in an offer?" Delta asked before she felt his arms wrap around her from behind. He rested his chin on top of her head, staring at the house with her. "Please, tell me you put in an offer. This won't stay on market for long."

"You're right. I closed on it this morning. The paperwork just needs your signature." Opie said, laughing when Delta covered her mouth to quiet her squeal. She turned in his arms, wrapping hers around his neck and jumping him. Her lips crashed into his, and he had to take a few steps to steady himself. He spoke between kisses. "The lawyer. . .is coming by. . .tomorrow before. . .the gift opening." He cupped her face in his hands, holding her back for a moment to catch his breath. "The bare essentials are inside right now."

"Working water and a bed is all we need tonight." Delta smirked before gaining her footing again and tugging on his hand. "C'mon, Mr. Winston. Tonight's the night you get to fuck your wife."

* * *

He couldn't make it to the bed. Both their leathers were tossed near the front door where hooks would be nailed in. Her dress lay as a scrap of see through material on the kitchen counter. His shirt was at the bottom of the stairs and jeans halfway up. When he saw that she had been naked underneath her dress all day, it took him two seconds to shed his briefs and pin her against the wall of the upstairs hallway. The first moan from her throat sent his hands to her thighs, lifting them to wrap around his waist before he thrust inside her.

The second moan flew out freely without his mouth on her to capture it, and the heels still on her feet pushed into his ass, encouraging him to move. His hips worked fast against hers, banging her back against the wall with each thrust. Her lips were on his neck. One hand cupping the back of his head while the other held onto his back for stability. She clung to him like a suit, and it pushed him to move to their final destination.

The master bedroom.

He had bought a new bed for the occasion. The king mattress sat on a frame a thick wood posts. If it were any bigger, pirates could sail the seas on it. The wood posts did it for him. Waking up every morning to see Delta fast asleep or getting ready for bed to see her splayed out with the tall posts to her advantage. This bed was worthy enough to fuck his wife in.

He laid her down in the red satin sheets. He always loved her satin sheets when they slept together, and she always looked good with any red close to her. Although, she didn't see to care about these details when he positioned her on her back and remained standing. He pulled her ass to the edge of the mattress with his hands on her hips and continued to thrust into her. The angle allowed him a complete view of her, breasts bouncing, and body accepting his member as it plunged inside of her.

He'd spend every waking moment doing this with her, but he was glad that he could do just that tonight on the night he got to fuck his wife without having to hide or worry about consequences. In their house, in their bed, he came inside her, his wife, and the desire to be with her only continued to grow with each swift movement of their hips colliding with each others. He was hers, and she was finally his.

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	30. Chapter 30

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Gemma groaned feeling the pounding in her head before Clay's hands were tugging on her waist, pulling her out of bed. "Fuck, baby, why'd you let me drink so much?"

"Let you? You threatened to castrate me if I took away your drink." Clay chuckled as he leaned down and kissed her lips gently. He pulled her onto her feet, waiting until she opened her eyes. "The kids will be here in a couple hours. The boys who survived the night are coming soon with the presents. I told them that they didn't have to stay though seeing as they will most likely break something."

Gemma slipped by him, reaching for her dresser drawers. "They're all going to be hungover and crabby from lack of sleep. As soon as they say their goodbyes to Opie and Delta, they are gone." She shed her pajamas, tossing them onto the bed as she pulled out a pair of jeans and a simple shirt. "It's going to be us, Jax, maybe Piney, and some of the Old Ladies who came to the wedding." She looked over at Clay, seeing him just staring at her. "What? What's wrong? Do you know how much we have to do before they get here?

Clay smirked before cupping her face in his hands and pecking her lips once more. "Just in enjoying the view, Mama."

* * *

Delta walked into her parents' house ahead of Opie, hugging club members as they passed her to say goodbye before they left for their honeymoon. She turned when Opie grabbed her hand. "I think Pap is leaving for the cabin to recoup. I'm going to say bye to him quick."

"Alright, I'll be here." Delta smiled before he pecked her lips and hurried out to Piney's bike. She turned back to the kitchen, seeing Gemma pull out a third egg bake from the oven. "Ma, you didn't have to make all of this. You should've called me. I would have come over to help you."

"I'm not going to take you away from your husband the morning after you marry him." Gemma stated proudly before smirking at her daughter. "I'll be doing that enough in the future. Besides, I'm sure you two needed your rest after yesterday and last night."

Delta chuckled as she moved around the counter and started organizing the food around the plates and napkins. "I was up early anyway. The lawyer came over with the real estate agent so I could sign the papers for our house." She laughed when Gemma's jaw dropped. "Yes, I'm officially I home owner." Her laughing continued when Gemma put down the bake and hugged her tightly. "It's just been an insane weekend. Insane, but good."

Gemma smiled and kissed her daughter's cheek. "Well, no shit. My baby is an adult." She pulled back, playing with Delta's hair. "You've always been an old soul though. That doesn't surprise me. I just don't know when you got so old on me."

"It all started when you let her get her damn ears pierced." Clay grinned before walking up behind Delta and kissing the top of her head, hugging her from behind. "Good morning, baby. How's the house?"

Delta smiled and looked up at him. "Gorgeous. I don't know how I'm going to fill it when it's just the two of us. Opie's kids are barely going to be there, but we have plenty of room for them to each have their own room."

Gemma pulled out the juice selections she had picked up a few days earlier. "What about when you have kids?"

"There's another bedroom. Opie said he could turn the office into a bedroom by building a closet if need be." Delta explained, thinking about the tour Opie gave her of the house when they woke up. "We'll figure that out when we cross that bridge though. It's not like I'm going to be having a kid any time soon."

Gemma chuckled, knowing better. "Baby, you'd be surprised." She looked up when Opie walked in. "Well, there's my son in-law. Your wife was just telling me about your wedding gift to her. You're going to spoil my daughter giving her presents like houses."

Opie laughed. "Only one time. She can surprise me next time if we decide to move." He saw the glare Delta sent his way, smirking. "But, I don't think that will happen. It's pretty amazing." He reached out for the bacon, jerking back when Gemma slapped his hand away. "Still? I'm family now."

"And, we still wait for our guests." Gemma stated, pointing a jug of juice at him with a playful smile. "The girls should be here any minute. Depending on how Jax faired last night, it could be another hour."

"You'd be wrong." Jax's voice sounded. He emerged from the dining room, rubbing his eyes of sleep in nothing but his sweats. "I figured it'd be easier to sleep here instead of getting up early. I didn't know I'd need ear plugs though when I got here."

"How did you get in?" Gemma asked, glancing around the house.

Jax sat down, wrapping his arm around Delta's waist and pulling her in for a side hug. "The better question would be did Clay give it to you harder."

Delta gagged and covered her ears. "Gross."

Gemma smirked as Clay circled around her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "If he hadn't, I'd be strangling you right now." She laughed when both her kids groaned, feeling Clay's lips press against her neck. "It's your own fault for not telling me you were going to stay here. Clay and I have been held back by the two of you for years. With both of you out of the house, we need a heads up."

"I'll keep that in mind." Opie saluted.

* * *

Delta stepped out of the upstairs bathroom, jumping when she saw her mother leaning on the wall right outside. "Jesus Christ, Ma. You trying to kill me?" She held a hand over her chest, feeling the quick thud of her heart. She could hear their guests laughing downstairs, all a little tipsy after drinking mimosas through the gift opening. With Opie anxious to hit the road, she had escaped upstairs to use the bathroom.

Gemma rolled her eyes. "Like I would ever do that." She crossed her arms over her chest, eyeing Delta. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine, why?" Delta asked, her eyebrows furrowing. She felt her guards go up when she saw the glint in Gemma's eyes. "What are you asking?"

Gemma shook her head. "Nothing. Just noticed you had a nice, healthy glow on you. Haven't seen it on you in a long time."

"The last time you said that I was pregnant." Delta whispered. She felt a weight drop in the pit of her stomach when Gemma's lips tugged upwards the slightest bit, but she quickly suppressed it. "No."

"You can say 'no' all you want. Baby, that glow on you does not lie." Gemma stated as she pushed herself off the wall. "I thought you'd be happy about this. I know you and Opie were planning on waiting, but you were so ready to be a mom before."

Delta ran a hand down her stomach, but she quickly let it fall to her side, shaking her head furiously. "No, I'm not. I can't be pregnant. I can't be pregnant again when Hale is in town. It's not going to happen. It isn't happening. You're talking crazy."

"What are you-" Gemma frowned but was cut when Delta fled down the stairs. She was quick to follow, watching as her daughter said goodbyes to their guests quickly.

Opie stood at the kitchen door, allowing everyone to see Clay loading the last present into the back of Opie's truck. "Hey, we're all packed up. Are you ready to head out, Mrs. Winston?" He smirked at Delta. "The bike is waiting for us at home."

Delta plastered a smile onto her face. "Let's get out of here then."

Gemma continued to follow closely, watching Delta hug Clay goodbye. When Clay looked up to Gemma, she motioned her hand across her neck as if slicing it open. He frowned and kissed Delta's head, bidding her and Opie farewell before they climbed into the truck. As Clay walked back to her, Delta locked eyes with her before the truck took off down the driveway.

Clay's arm wound around her waist, watching his daughter and son in-law leave. "What's wrong? She didn't know."

"She refuses to believe it." Gemma breathed.

"Why?" Clay asked, his attention turning to her.

Gemma inhaled sharply, watching the tailgate of the truck disappear from sight. "She's scared."

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	31. Chapter 31

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"Hey," Opie's voice broke Delta out of her own thoughts, bringing her eyes to meet his, "are you okay? You've barely spoken since we left your parents. Did your mom say something to you before we got in the truck?"

Delta shook her head, smiling as she walked over to him. "Just thinking about what a whirlwind this has been." She saw the worry in his eyes and kissed his lips softly. "A good whirlwind, Ope." She wrapped her arms around his neck, happy to see him take her answer and grin at her. "Did you lock up the house?"

Opie held up the keys. "Yep, we are ready to go." He looked down her body, seeing her jean covered legs and the leather that claimed her as Sons. "I don't know how far we'll go though. You're going to make me want to pull into the closest motel parking lot dressed like that."

Delta chuckled before pulling back and allowing him to climb onto the bike. "I'm covered nearly head to toe."

"Yes, but it's also skin tight." Opie pulled her closer to him by her waist and kissed her lips. "Get on."

Delta snapped the helmet in place and climbed on behind Opie, pausing slightly as she melded herself to his back. There was nothing to worry about. She'd been on a million bike rides before, and she _wasn't_ pregnant. That was her last thought before the engine roared to life beneath them and Opie kicked off their trip.

* * *

Gemma held up her hand to signal to Jax as he backed up the tow truck filled with scrap pieces of metal. Once the engine was cut, she peered inside to look more closely as her son hopped out of the driver's seat. "This is all you found?"

"It's the base. It'll keep me busy for today. Tig is heading out later with Juice to find more parts. Hopefully, they can find something, because I don't think I can salvage anything from the framework that Hale torched." Jax sighed as he reached in and grabbed a piece. "Are you sure we can't just tell her we finished it for her and buy a restored bug? I still haven't technically given her anything for the wedding yet."

"You know as well as I do that she isn't just restoring it." Gemma stated before they both turned hearing a car pull into the lot. "For fuck's sake. I figured he'd make himself scarce until Delta got back at least."

Jax stepped in front of his mother, keeping a barrier between her and Hale's eyesight. "We aren't that lucky."

Gemma walked with Jax towards the clubhouse, staying somewhat behind him despite her attempts to do otherwise. When they were close enough, Clay stepped up beside her along with every other club member staring daggers at a dirty Hale. Apparently, the boys' plan worked out better than they thought. Stahl stepped out from the other side, a few dried leaves stuck in her hair and makeup smudged in every direction.

"What's going on here? Training for the forest rangers, Hale?" Jax asked with a smirk. "It ain't a good look for you."

Hale glowered at him, cocking his head with his one word comeback. "Funny." He slammed his door shut and stepped forward, but not far enough to be more than a foot away from his car. "Where were you yesterday?"

Clay grinned, white teeth shining. "We were celebrating. My little girl got married yesterday. Had a nice little ceremony up on top of the hill."

"So, you weren't by old man Karl's yesterday?" Hale asked. His arm lifted slightly and revealed dark sweat stains in his armpits that had also managed to get dirt. The sight made a few of the boys snicker and turn their cheek to their success.

Clay shook his head, keeping his arm tight around Gemma. "Nope. All my brothers were at the wedding."

Hale glanced around the club, his eyes turned darker with every pass and not finding the person he was looking for. "I'll need to speak with Opie and Delta about that. They would have the guest list, right?"

"We didn't have a guest list." Gemma piped in, still mostly blocked by Jax's body. But, she could make eye contact with the two. "If you want to talk to them, you'll have to wait a few weeks. They left for their honeymoon."

"Honeymoon?" Hale's eyes widened to sauces and his complexion dulled considerably.

Clay smiled. "Yeah, not sure when they'll be back though. If they take my advice, they'll take as much time as they want to let the honeymoon phase set in. I know Opie will. He's been in love with my daughter since she was a freshman." He saw the shock wash over Hale's face, failing to hide his emotions over the news. "Is that all? We have more important issues to tend to."

Stahl cleared her throat on the other side of the car. "Hale, let's go. There's no reason for us to be here."

"We're not leaving." Hale nearly growled before glaring at Clay and Gemma. "Where is she? Where is Delta?"

Gemma shook her head. "None of your business. If you go looking for her, the police will be told to go looking for you. Could be for criminal evidence or they could be sent on a search for your body. The options are endless." She glanced at Stahl, seeing an anger burning there. Whether it was for Gemma or for Hale, it wasn't clear. "My daughter is happily married, Hale."

"That's what your parents thought until you showed up in Charming with a gang." Hale said, a smirk growing on his face when everyone else seemed to go stone cold. "I saw your parents suffer every time they saw you in town to the point that your father finally moved your mother to Oregon to save her the heartache. But, we both know it was too late. The damage was done."

Clay held Gemma tighter when he felt her hand tighten into a fist with his undershirt locked in her grip. He whispered softly, discretely, so Hale wouldn't goad her further. "Stay calm. He's bluffing."

"Before he left though, I promised him that I would save his little girl from the club. No matter what it took. I promised him that I would get you out and keep his grandchildren safe." Hale continued, taking another daring step closer to Jax who was still standing in front of Clay and Gemma like a guardian.

Jax's jaw clenched painfully. "Raping my baby sister is protecting her?"

Hale frowned. "I was trying to get her to leave the club. My plan was to take her with me when I moved for my new job. I figured it would get you away from the club a good portion of the time at least." He shrugged with a smirk. "I never took into account the possibility of having a child with her."

"You didn't have to go after Delta." Gemma breathed. She could feel her heartbeat skyrocketing, her head spinning.

Hale grinned, moving back to his car. "I tried to get you out when I was in high school, Gemma. I believe you told me recently you should've castrated me for that incident." He chuckled when Clay's eyes flickered with a fire he was sure most saw right before their life drained into a pool of blood beneath their corpses. He mock saluted them, gesturing for a shocked Stahl to get back in the car. "I'll be keeping an eye and ear out for my girl. I don't intend to break my promise."

Gemma used the last of her strength to watch the car leave the lot. She could faintly hear Clay barking at the others to close and lock the gates, but her focus was lost. Before she could regain her bearings, her knees gave out and her vision blurred.

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	32. Chapter 32

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"Fuck." Gemma breathed out as her eyes opened. She knew where she was from the smell alone. Laying in a hospital gown in one of the sterilized beds, she woke to find Clay and Jax relieved to find her awake. "What happened?"

"You weren't taking your meds." Clay stated before taking her hand into his. "Doc said that a few days of rest and getting you back on should reset you. That means you need to keep taking your pills."

Gemma rolled her eyes. "They make my feet swell up." She huffed out a breath. "Don't tell me you called Delta."

Jax shook his head, resting his palms at the foot of the bed. "We both agreed that it would only worry her and cause her and Opie to turn around and come back. After Hale's clear intentions this morning, she needs to stay as far from Charming as possible. Besides, she and Opie deserve a break from this shit storm." He glanced at Clay for a moment. "We want you to visit Grandpa though. We don't know what he told Hale or if he told Hale anything. But, talking to him might get him to stop Hale from coming after Delta."

"I'm guessing you won't allow me to leave this bed until the doctor gives me the all clear." Gemma grumbled looking up at Clay.

"You bet your ass." Clay stated before pulling up a chair next to her bed. "I've already sent one of the guys to pack a bag. I'm staying here with you." He sat down next to her before looking at Jax. "Why don't you go check on your boy? I want to talk to your mother."

Jax nodded before walking around and kissing Gemma's cheek. "Glad you're okay though, Ma."

Gemma smiled after him as he left the room before turning her attention back to Clay, slipping her hand into his where it laid palm up on the bed. "I didn't mean to scare you. I feel fine, honestly."

"And, I'm relieved to know that." Clay said before leaning closer. "But, what was Hale talking about when he said he asked you to leave the club before? When he was in high school? I need to know if he did something to you or to Delta way back then."

Gemma shook her head. "No, Delta was two or three at the most. It was his and Jax's senior year. Just before school started back up. Jax, Opie, and Hale were hanging out, and I told them to go drive around or something so Delta could nap in a quiet house. Jax and Opie went outside. Hale hung back." She huffed out a breath. "I thought he was being dumb at first, using lame flirts that were barely flirts. Then, he came up behind me when I was at the sink. He barely got his hands on my hips before I had him on the floor."

Clay's jaw tensed. "Anything else?"

"No, I told Jax not to bring him around anymore after that." Gemma stated adamantly. "I swear, Clay. I thought he was just being a hormonal teenager trying to see who he could sleep with. I never thought he would go after Delta, let alone stalk her." She groaned when a pain hit her chest, her heart monitor beeping erratically.

"Hey, calm down, Mama." Clay whispered, helping her lay back against her pillow smoothly. He waited until the monitor slowed and her breathing returned to normal before speaking again. "This isn't your fault. I just wanted to know why you didn't tell me when it happened."

Gemma sighed. "I figured why tell you when I kicked Hale's ass in our kitchen. I thought telling you would send another fight his way." She stared up at him, her hand squeezing his briefly. "I should've told you to bury him then. Our little care free girl would still be care free."

Clay smiled sadly. "Our little care free girl also used to cling to you like fur on a dog. She's grown up, baby. About to give us another grandbaby to spoil." He brushed back some hair from her face. "We're going to get Hale, Gem. He isn't going to lay a hand on our baby girl ever again."

"Well, he needs to be taken care of sooner rather than later," Gemma breathed with a nod, "cause if he finds out that Delta is already pregnant, he's going to do everything in his power to terminate it so she can have his baby. Stahl needs to leave town. Now."

"I thought you said she pulled you and Delta over to talk about setting up a plan to take him down. Can you trust her?" Clay asked. "Do you think you could get her out of town somehow?"

Gemma shook her head. "She's double-crossing her own kind. She can't be trusted by anybody. Besides, she won't do shit unless we give up the club for something." She huffed out a breath. "We need to get her out of town though. Do you think one of the other charters could cause some trouble? Maybe get a rival into trouble with ATF."

Clay scratched the back of his neck. "With the heat on us already, it would have to be another club. I'll check around and see if anything is in the works." He met her eyes. "The moment Hale goes missing though, she's going to know it was us. She's too close to this, to us."

"And, she'll remain that way until we take care of her properly." Gemma stated. "She's only going to screw us in the end, Clay."

He ran a hand down his face before watching their fingers tangle together. "Then, I guess we have some more work to do."

* * *

Delta slid the key into the hotel room door before opening the door for Opie to carry in the little luggage they had. When he was in, she let the door click shut before turning to look out the window. They had made it all the way to Vegas before deciding it was time to take a break, and Opie made sure to get a room with a view of the strip. "Baby, this place is a lot more lights than we're used to."

"Tell me about it." Opie chuckled before wrapping his arms around her from behind so he could look out the window as well. "If Tig ever came here, I'm sure we wouldn't be able to find him for a month."

Delta laughed, bringing her hands up to rest on his arm that was laying over her chest. "Try three." She leaned back against his chest, humming softly. "It is pretty though."

"Not as pretty as my wife." Opie said into her ear. He kissed her hair, holding her tighter. "Can't believe I finally get to call you that. My wife. I've been waiting a long time to say those words, Delta."

Delta smiled and turned in his arms, looking up at him. "Now, you get to say them the rest of your life, Mr. Winston. You promised me forever, so I hope you intend to live up to that promise. I can't be with anyone else, and I don't want to be. I want all of you."

Opie reached down and grabbed her thighs, picking her up and wrapping her legs around his waist. "All of me, huh? Does that include clothing?"

She giggled as she kissed him. "Only when we're out in public." She gasped when he dropped her back on the bed, reaching for the button of her jeans before she had finished bouncing on the springs. "You can't even wait ten minutes, can you?"

"I probably could, but I don't want to." Opie smiled as he pulled the skin tight material off of his wife. He watched as she unzipped her jacket, moving his hands to his own clothes. "You've been driving me crazy all day in this." He yanked his shirt over his head and kneeled by the bed before Delta could finish removing her jacket. As it was finally coming off of her, Opie spread her thighs apart and buried his face between them, grinning when she moaned his name.

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	33. Chapter 33

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Delta groaned when she felt the mattress dip beside her, causing her body to lean towards it. "Ope, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to check on the bike and check in with the concierge. Somebody mentioned there's a Grand Canyon tour today." Opie yawned before kissing her forehead and standing back up to grab his kutte.

"You want to go on a tour? With tourists?" Delta asked, chuckling even as she asked him.

Opie smiled before grabbing her foot peaking out from the covers and tickling it before she yanked it under the covers again. "We can sit on the back of the bus and fool around. We'll be back tonight in time for dinner, maybe see a show."

Delta grinned up at him, holding the comforter over her chest as she sat up. "As long as there are no g-strings, I'll let you plan the entire day if you want." She smiled when he leaned down and pecked her lips. "I'm gonna hop in the shower before we go." She watched him leave before getting out of the bed and walking to the bathroom. Despite the idea of spending the day with strangers, she was looking forward to having a day alone with Opie just to relax and enjoy their time together. Life had been so stressful since they had gotten back together; she couldn't remember a single second where they were just living their lives.

The thought of that though was thrown out the door when Delta caught a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror. Trying to deny it wouldn't work anymore. She did have the glow, the glow of pregnancy. Her breasts were fuller, and she could smell the peanuts in the mini fridge before they even discovered it the night before. "Shit." She breathed before closing and locking the door, pulling her cell phone out of her pocket.

* * *

Gemma managed to swallow the last bite of the bland hospital oatmeal when her phone started ringing on the small table. She smiled seeing Delta's name on the screen along with a picture of her when she was younger. Picking up the phone, she pressed it to her ear. "Hey baby, are you calling to gloat about how nice Vegas is?"

"Not yet." Delta's voice had a slight tremor to it, and Gemma's flags started going up one by one. "Have I missed anything?"

"Nothing here." Gemma said after a moment, questioning whether or not her daughter knew of her sudden hospital stay. "What's wrong, baby? You sound like your brother the first time he found out he got crabs."

Delta rolled her eyes, pulling herself onto the bathroom counter. "Yesterday at the house, did you really mean those things about me being pregnant?"

Gemma leaned back into her bed, playing with the edge of her blanket. "You know I would never joke about that. Not after Thomas. Not after Maverick. Our family genes allow weaknesses, but they produce individuals hard to kill. I only mentioned it, because I thought you would be happy. You were the person who helped me move forward. I figured this baby would be the same to you."

"I'm scared." Delta confessed in a whisper, bringing her knees against her chest. "I think you might be right, and I don't want to lose another baby."

"I know you don't." Gemma breathed. "Look, I can't promise you that everything is going to be okay. There are just some things out of our control. But, this pregnancy would be a lot different than your last one. With Maverick, you were stressed and terrified and terrorized. The fact that you were pregnant as long as you were is a miracle. This baby has a father that you love. You aren't a high school freshman anymore. You're a wife and a woman too smart for her own good sometimes. Things are different now, Delta. Just focus on taking care of you. Have you even taken a test yet?"

Delta sighed. "No. I don't see how I can right now. Opie and I spend all our time together, and he'll notice if I buy pregnancy tests."

Gemma glanced up when Clay walked into the hospital room with a bag for her. "I'll pick some up when I go to the drug store. I gotta grab some things anyway. I'm going up to see your grandfather for a day or two. Your father thinks it would be better for me to be out of town for a few days. The club is working on getting Hale."

"Forget getting him. We just need to kill him."

* * *

Jax stood in the hospital hallway, just a corridor down from his son's room. He longed for a cigarette, but didn't dare light one in the hospital, let alone the NICU. His back leaned up against the wall and remained there even as he heard the clicking of heels. He didn't move his attention though.

Without looking her way, he could already see the wild eyes that came with her believing she was on a hot trail. Her pantsuit hugged her frame in just the right way to keep her tough yet letting everyone know she was a woman after all. In her had, a large case file that wouldn't even be opened during their conversation. This was formality, not his confession.

"Ballsy of you to meet me out in public like this." Stahl's voice hummed her approval of the tactic, squinting slightly at the son of Sons. "Or, a smarter move."

"It's not your concern either way." Jax stated.

"It is if you suddenly end up dead." Stahl retorted, leaning against the opposite wall. She did a quick glance up and down the halls. "We both want something from each other. Let's negotiate."

Jax chuckled, shaking his head. "I'm not selling out my club. My baby sister wouldn't forgive me, and I'm meeting you to spare her. Something you seem to be interested in as well." He saw the confusion on her face. "I know about your little hustle pulling over my mom. You wouldn't care if you'd let them keep driving. I don't think you want to protect my sister, but I know that you don't want Hale to continue what he's doing."

Stahl paused a moment, keeping a poker face. "I can't just hand over a cop and tell you guys to go crazy."

"Not what I'm asking." Jax shook his head. "Just wondering what it will take for you to leave town. Maybe take a vacation." He shrugged his shoulders, pushing off the wall. "The guy you're sleeping with raped a fifteen year old girl, knocked her up, and then terrorized her so badly that she lost her unborn child months into the pregnancy. Instead of owning that, he led you to believe that he had nothing to do with her to claiming that she aborted his baby. He's admitted statuary rape to you, and you've done nothing. So, I'm not giving you jack shit, because my club hasn't done anything to this guy despite what he's done to someone we care deeply about. You're sitting on a guy who confessed to rape, even if he claims it's consensual, you know the timeline. It doesn't work. So if you really want to help my sister, leave town."

"I came here to put your club away, to end the violence that seems to hold this town hostage." Stahl corrected him.

Jax smiled with a dark chuckle. "My club - we protect this town. We keep out the drugs and prostitution. We don't want anything bad to happen to the good people here, and we don't allow bad influences in to reach the kids. Other than a few loud bikes and rowdy parties, my club does more than the cops do here. Your boy toy proves that."

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	34. Chapter 34

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"Stahl has fallen off the map. I spoke to her a few times, and she said she was going to head over to Montana. Some trucker prostitute problem." Jax explained, sitting at the table. "But, Unser said ATF is sniffing around. They haven't heard from her in three weeks, and I haven't either. She's disappeared, and so has Hale."

"Are we thinking they ran off together?" Clay asked, his chin resting on his fist.

"Could be, but Stahl was seeing what Hale was." Chibbs chimed in. "She offered to help our girl, even if she didn't mean it."

"So, we could be looking for a body." Tig sighed, turning his eyes to Clay. "If Hale works it right, he could pin her death on us. We need to find her before officials do."

"And if we find it, we might find out where Hale has been hiding." Jax breathed before they all heard a car pull into the lot. "I think that's Gemma."

Clay nodded, knocking his knuckles twice on the table. "We know Hale isn't at his house. Let's see if he has any other places around. Hangouts, houses, apartments. Hell, we could be looking at a warehouse. He won't go far though. He wants Delta." He looked at Jax. "She and Ope are arriving sometime this afternoon. We need to catch him up on what's going on and keep someone with Delta while we're doing that. I want someone with Gem too. Hale might get desperate enough to after her. He did it once, and I won't chance it again."

* * *

Gemma huffed out a breath, her bangs flopping against her forehead, as she looked around the office. Gone for a little over a week, and the boys had turned her little oasis into the Devil's home base. Tossing her purse and a brown bag from the drug store onto the office chair, she started rummaging through the papers and notes cluttering her desk. It didn't take long for the boys to start spilling out of the clubhouse, and Clay walked straight to her.

"Welcome back home, baby." Clay smiled before wrapping his arm around her and pecking her lips. "How's that ticker of yours?"

"Why? You looking to take it for a test ride?" Gemma smirked, a chuckle bubbling from her lips when he glanced down at her cleavage for a split second. She kissed him again, short but promising. "My heart and I can handle whatever you have in mind for later."

Clay grinned, pulling her closer. "Who said anything about later?" She let out a belly laugh this time, and it made him relax a little bit more. "I missed you, Momma."

Gemma smiled, draping her arms over his shoulders. "I missed you too, baby." She pressed her forehead to his, inhaling softly before more urgent matters invaded her next sentence. "He wasn't lying, Clay. Daddy's mind is going, but he thinks that Hale got Delta, Jax, and I out of the club. Thinks Hale and Delta married. He doesn't know about Maverick, but Hale got to him, Clay. Daddy isn't there anymore. Brief moments, but he just isn't there."

Clay sighed and wrapped his arms around Gemma to hug her closer, bringing her head to his shoulder. He knew that her relationship with her father was different than the one she had with her mother. He'd never really made a connection with either of them. John had made sure to keep her parents far away when they were first married and expecting Jax, and Clay was happy for that decision from the late President. But, he knew it hurt Gemma in the long run. "I'm sorry, baby."

"How could we not see this, Clay?" Gemma breathed into his neck. "Hale's promise to Daddy. Delta's torture. Her pregnancy. Everything. How could we not see any of it until it was told to our faces? Are we really that blind to what's going on around us?"

"We live a life that's good for hiding secrets, and that includes each other." Clay stated. "Delta learned from us. As for your father, he probably thought he was trying help you. Hale twisted it on him, and we didn't expect it." He kissed her head. "We're going to end this though."

Gemma pulled back, cupping his face in her hands. "But, Delta comes home today, and he's still alive. You said on the phone last night that you don't know where he is. He's done everything but break into our home."

Clay met her eyes fiercely, intent on getting his message through to her, and breathed to her calmly. "And, we'll be ready for him if he tries."

* * *

Delta chuckled as she clung to Opie's kutte, seeing the boys in the lot whoop and holler to welcome them back home. He'd barely had time to park the bike when Tig was scooping her up into his arms and swinging her around to see the rest of the guys. Opie laughed himself as he climbed off his bike. "Tig, put my wife down."

"What? You want more time with her. Man, married life has made you soft." Tig teased before putting Delta down on her feet. He kept his arms around her though, holding her against his chest. "You afraid I'll steal her?"

"I'm more worried about zombies than you taking her away from me." Opie scoffed before taking Delta's helmet off her head and clipping it to his bike. "Where's Clay? He said he wanted to talk to me once we got back."

Piney glanced at the clubhouse. "He's sitting at the table. We'll go over things with you in there." He smiled at Delta, kissing her cheek. "Welcome back home, sweetheart. I'm sure your ma is ready to see you."

"I'm sure she is. I'm ready to see her." Delta breathed, squeezing his hand. She looked over her shoulder at Opie, jutting her chin towards the clubhouse. "Go ahead. I won't go far. I promise." She chuckled when he rolled his eyes, but he moved with the rest of the guys towards the clubhouse. It didn't take long for her to walk into her mother's office, seeing her buried in a mound of unfiled paperwork. Leaning against the doorframe and crossing her arms over her chest, Delta took advantage of the rare moment - her mother not noticing her arrival. "Hey, stranger."

Gemma looked up and grinned seeing her daughter for the first time in over a month. Standing up, she hurried over to her and hugged her tightly. "Hey, baby. Welcome home." She pulled back just enough to cup her face. A smile, a healthy glow, a growing tits. "How are you feeling, honey?"

Delta bit her lip and shrugged. "Ope and I had an amazing time. We spent some time in Texas after Vegas, and then headed up to Chicago. Kansas and Oklahoma are very flat." She ran a hand through her hair. "After the first two weeks, my thoughts on possible pregnancy dwindled down to three times a day."

Gemma chuckled at her daughter's sarcasm before pulling her to sit down in the office. "Well, I stopped by the drug store and picked up some tests for you. You can take them at the house later. Your father brought your car up. He didn't want it sitting at your house and letting Hale know where you're living now."

"I'm sure he knows somehow." Delta sighed before sitting down on the couch. Gemma sat back in her office chair, pulling it closer to her. "How was Grandpa? You went up to see him a week ago, right?"

"Just got back this morning." Gemma nodded. "He isn't doing too well. Memory is going. Lots of confusion and just. . .being lost." She brushed back Delta's hair. "As soon as this is all done, we'll go get him settled someplace people can take care of him. When things are safe, we'll go. Have a nice girls' trip, you and me."

Delta took Gemma's hands into hers reassuringly. "I'm sorry, Mom. We'll get him the best care though."

Gemma smiled gently before pulling Delta back to her chest for a hug, burying her nose in her daughter's hair. "You are too good for this family, baby. The most amazing and resilient woman I know."

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	35. Chapter 35

**Please review! Sorry it's been so long. I've been busy getting prepared for my move and then moving and then unpacking. I'm officially a resident of Los Angeles, California guys!**

"Take the damn test." Gemma shouted outside the bathroom door, glancing back down the stairs to see Tig still standing guard outside in the driveway. "You used to pee through your diaper as a baby. It shouldn't be this hard."

"You yelling at me through the door doesn't help." Delta smarted back, opening up the door to the bathroom while wiping off her hands with a towel. "I took the test. We have to wait five minutes to see the results." She tossed the item aside before perching herself on the counter with a sigh. "It's not like we don't know the answer already."

Gemma stepped inside, standing in front of her daughter. "I knew before you married your husband. Then, seeing you this morning," she reached up and cupped Delta's breasts in her hands, squeezing them playfully. "These will be bigger than mine by next year."

"Shut up." Delta smiled as she smacked Gemma's hands away from her. "I guess I didn't break tradition. I was knocked up at my wedding." She glanced over at the pregnancy test on the other end of the counter. "How am I going to tell Ope? He was so excited about things settling down and finally having some time just for the two of us. I wasn't planning on having a kid already."

Gemma brushed back Delta's hair. "Baby, most kids aren't planned, especially in this family. But, you've had the talk with Ope. You both want kids. He's already got two, and he's great with them."

Delta bit her lip. "Yeah, and I can't even hold my own nephew."

"It will get better." Gemma breathed. She pinched Delta's chin gently, pulling her eyes up to meet hers. "I know you don't feel like it now, but you are going to be the best mom. You'll worry about it the rest of your life, whether or not you did the right thing-"

Delta rolled her eyes. "Stellar pep talk, Mom."

"But, you are the only mother this child is ever going to have. You will know what is best for your own child, and no one can tell you differently." Gemma continued on anyway. "If you want to say no or put your kid in time out, that's your choice. So is the never ending battle of pizza or no pizza for breakfast. Screw the parenting books and websites, and fuck everyone else. You've got a better hunch for this than I ever have, and look how you and your brother turned out."

Delta chuckled with a shake of her head. "Oh, you mean prince of the bikers and the daughter pregnant at fifteen?"

Gemma waved her hand around as if the idea were a fly she had to shoo away. "Those are just circumstances." She pressed her index finger against the center of Delta's forehead. "I've got a son ready to take over a successful business and make it his own, and I've got an independent daughter who graduated with honors, enough honors to get an acceptance letter into Stanford."

"I never got an acceptance letter from Stanford." Delta frowned.

"It came in the mail while you were on your honeymoon, and I couldn't wait." Gemma stated with a smirk. "Congrats. You never told me you applied there though."

Delta's eyes widened. "I never thought I would get in. It was more of a joke than an actual attempt to get in." She leaned back against the wall, shaking her head. "You can't tell anyone about any of this. Not even Dad. I need to tell Opie first, and I have no idea how I'm going to tell him."

"Tell him during sex. He'll be so focused on what he's doing to you, and it will remind him that fucking you in the clubhouse led to this little miracle." Gemma shrugged.

Delta rolled her eyes. "Please, don't tell me that's how you told Dad you were pregnant with me."

"Of course not," Gemma huffed out. "He actually knew I was pregnant before me. He told me to take a test before he and the boys left for a ride. Said he wanted to know if he should get a gift for you while on the road."

Delta smirked. "Probably picked up something for a baby boy."

Gemma chuckled with a shake of her head. "He came back with a pink onsie that said Daddy's Little Biker. I told him I thought you were a girl once I took the test, and I was right. You just felt different from when I carried your brothers." She kissed Delta's forehead. "You'll figure it out, baby."

* * *

"Where do you think he is?" Opie asked, his voice quiet despite the sharp edge in it. He sat in his spot at the table in the chapel, his brothers silent as statues all around him. All of them were on the same page, not even attempting to make eye contact with another. The plan was settled - they just had to tell the last person.

"Somewhere remote. Someplace we obviously don't know about." Clay stated.

Jax cleared his throat, staring down at the table. "We didn't want it to come to this, but she may be our only shot."

Opie's nostrils flared as he glared at hihis best friend. "No way are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting. She is my wife, your sister," he turned his eyes to Clay, "you're daughter."

"We just want to ask her. She won't go anywhere. No one is going to put her in danger here." Jax defended himself and the other members. "Making her relive her time with Hale, asking her about details she hasn't been willing to share yet has been what we've been trying to avoid this entire time. But, he's vanished, man."

"So, look harder. He hasn't left. He won't leave without Delta for his sick fantasy." Opie gritted out through clenched teeth. "We've been away for over a month. If there were people watching him, you wouldn't have lost him."

Tig sighed. "Man, we sat on him for days. That ATF bitch he's been boning is missing too. Jax tried to make a deal with her, but she's gone dark. Not just with us, but with her agency. She could be dead or helping him. For her sake, I hope she's in a shallow grave."

Opie shook his head. "Yeah, one he probably has planned for Delta after he gets what he wants from her. I'm not going to chance it. No way."

Clay closed his eyes. "He needs to die for what he did to her, Ope. We can't lose him again. He can't walk away free this time."

Opie nodded, running a hand down his face. "What do you need from me? What should I ask her?"

"We can bring her in. We could have Gemma talk to her-" Jax started to explain, but he was cut off by Opie.

"We do this on Hitler terms." He reiterated. "What do you need me to do?"

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	36. Chapter 36

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Delta was startled awake when she heard the front door close to her parents' house. After having dinner with Gemma, they had decided to wait for the boys at the house. When she looked over at the door, she could see that Opie had just arrived, walking over to her in the darkness. "Hey, what time is it?"

"Late. I didn't mean to wake you." Opie breathed as he sat down beside her, collapsing against the couch cushions. "Tig wanted to go back to the clubhouse, and your mother said she had to grab some stuff from the office. . .whatever that is."

"It was probably just an excuse so we could be alone together." Delta said, mostly to herself, before refocusing back on her husband. "What did you find out from the guys? Ma and Tig wouldn't really tell me anything. Although, I don't think they're telling Ma much either."

Opie shook his head. "He's in the wind. They lost him, can't find him, and want me to have you relive your time with him to see if there's somewhere he would go we don't know about." He looked straight ahead, avoiding looking at Delta at all costs. This morning, he was on Cloud 9 being welcomed home with his new wife after a country trip on his bike. After this afternoon, it felt like he'd been suffocating for three days. "But, I don't want to get into it now. I don't want to get into it at all. I just want to enjoy our time together. Haven't even been back in Charming for twenty-four hours and I feel like I need another vacation."

Delta bit her lip when he laid his head in her lap. She gently ran her fingers through his hair. "Well, I've got some news. Part of it is funny."

"I'm all ears. I want to think about something else." Opie hummed, his eyes closing.

Delta glanced at the opened mail on the coffee table. "Um, do you remember when I applied for all those colleges thinking I'd never get into any of them?" His eyes opened as he nodded slowly. "Stanford got back to me."

"Stanford?" Opie shot up from her lap, standing on his feet and nearly towering over her. "You didn't tell me you applied to Stanford!"

Delta frowned, holding up her hands. "Hey! Calm down. I applied there as a joke. I never considered going."

Opie huffed out a breath, shaking his head. "Before we got married, you weren't even talking about going to college. I can't believe you're actually thinking about going. I told you I wanted us to have some time together first."

"Opie, I talked about college. Maybe not Stanford, but I told you I wanted to go to college. I want an education, something outside of the club." Delta fought back, standing up. "You can't expect me to play housewife. You'll be busy with the club. I'll be home when you are. It's not going to take away anything from you." She saw more anger fill his eyes. "I can't believe we're arguing about this! I don't even know if I want to go in the fall. I might want to take a year off."

Opie shrugged his shoulders. "Why wait? I'm sure you'll find plenty of other people there you'll want to hang out with. Who wants to be around their convict husband in a biker gang anyway?"

Delta rolled her eyes. "Oh, fuck you. Now, you're just being childish. You know that I fucking love you. I wouldn't have married you if I didn't, but does that really mean that my whole life needs to revolve around you and the club? I can't have any other goals?"

"Why now? I told you-" Opie started, but Delta cut him off with a shout.

"I know what you said!" She exhaled heavily, closing her eyes as she rested her hands on her hips. "I want that too, but things come up. Life happens. Shit we didn't plan. My God, the whole acceptance letter was supposed to be an icebreakers, because I didn't know how to tell you the real fucking news."

Opie's eyes widened. "There's more?"

Delta scoffed, burying her face in her hands for a brief moment. "You act like it's the end of the world." She watched as he sat down in Clay's usual spot on the recliner, but he looked like he was in actual pain. "You know what - fine. If you want to act this way, maybe I will go to Stanford and live in the dorms and fuck a few freshman. What the hell, I might just give birth to our child there for all you seem to care."

"What?" Opie's eyes turned to saucers as his head whipped to face her. "You're pregnant?"

"Yeah, you knocked me up, Ope. My mom and dad knew at our fucking wedding." Delta snapped at him, crossing her arms over her chest.

Opie stood again, this time shaking his head as if confused. "How did this happen?"

Delta let out a sarcastic laugh as she walked past him towards the foyer. "Do I really need to explain this to you? This isn't some kitty shit where we shared a juice box and now we're bound for eternity. We fucked around like bunnies everywhere from the clubhouse to the janitor's closet at the hardware store. You've got two kids of your own. You should know how this works."

"But, we were careful!" Opie fought back as he followed her, wrapping his hand around her arm to stop her.

Delta whipped her limb away from him though, pointing her finger at him. "Screw careful. Screw everything and everyone. You and I both know that life decides to screw with our plans anyway." She grabbed her car keys and Opie's bike keys off the table and stormed outside to the front lawn with Opie on her heels. "I've got some more news for you." She flung his keys out into the woods beside the house before turning back to Opie. "Your bike is stuck until you find your keys."

Opie jogged into the woods with his phone flashlight turned on. "What the hell is the matter with you?" He began looked around the leaves, trying to see if he could get his flashlight to reflect off anything. But, his attention was diverted when he heard Delta's car engine roar to life. "Delta! Where are you going?" He rushed back out towards her car, yelling at her the entire time to cut it off, but she peeled out of the driveway like she had the quarter-mile to win. "Knowing you, you probably locked the door too!" He grunted before running towards the house and confirming his suspicions.

* * *

Jax grunted, groaning in frustration when his phone started ringing just as he was about to get off. Tara matched his grunt below him, trying to pull him back to her. "Ignore it. It's probably Gemma."

He grabbed his phone anyway. "It's Delta. I gotta answer it."

"Gemma probably told her I was here and asked her to call you. Isn't she supposed to be with Opie right now anyway?" Tara questioned, attempting to pull him back again.

Jax shook his head. "There's a chance of that, but my sister calls me when she needs me." He pulled out of her, sitting on the edge of his bed as he answered his phone. "This had better be good."

"What? Crow or Doctor?" His sister's voice rang back through the phone, full of enough sarcasm to battle his mother's voice. "Sorry to interrupt your pussy time. You can bond with Opie over it later."

Jax frowned as he stood up, bouncing slightly to pull his jeans back on. "What are you talking about? What happened with you and Ope?" He tugged on his shirt and excused himself to the bathroom to have some semblance of privacy. He sat down on the toilet seat. "I know he had a rough day today, but he was looking forward to having some time with you."

Delta chuckled sadly. "Yeah, he blew up at me. We got into this full blown argument about whether or not I wanted to go to college. I got an acceptance letter to Stanford, and I told Opie it was a joke. But, he turned into the Hulk about it with a snap of the fingers." She sniffled, despite her best efforts to hide the fact that she had been crying. "I didn't want to tell him that way. I didn't want it to be as fucked up as it was."

Jax rubbed his forehead, hearing more than what she was saying. "Darlin', I know you aren't sad over some shit like that. What's really going on?"

"Jax, I was trying to tell him I was pregnant." Delta breathed, more tears filling her eyes. "I am pregnant. I told him, and he was so mad. He's been so hung up on things just being him and I. He started accusing me of basically not wanting to be with him anymore. Jax, it was horrible." She wiped at her eyes. "I stormed out of the house and left him locked out with his keys somewhere in the yard. I think he left his phone inside too."

"Wait, you're telling me that you're out by yourself." Jax confirmed before bolting from his bathroom and out towards the rest of the clubhouse. "Delta, get your ass back to the clubhouse now."

Delta rolled her eyes. "Jax, I'm fine. But, you fucked up on something. There's rattling under the hood."

Jax shook his head. "Don't pull over to look at it. Just get here, NOW!" He hurried outside, seeing Gemma and Clay with some of the other members around the bonfire. "Where are you?"

"I was on my way. I'll be there in a minute." Delta sighed, seeing the clubhouse just a block away. "I know it was stupid, Jax. I just. . .I wanted things to go different. I wanted him to be happy."

Jax huffed out a breath of relief seeing her headlights. "I know you did, sis. Just get in here." He hung up, sliding his phone into his pocket and hailing her inside the lot. When she was parked, he opened up the car door and pulled her out before hugging her tightly. "You scared the shit out of me."

"Sorry." Delta breathed into his shoulder, wrapping her arms around him as well. "You still fucked up my car."

Jax chuckled into her hair. "That's the least of your worries." He kissed her temple. "Congrats by the way. Abel could use a cousin to tousle around with." He pulled back, seeing the small amounts of evidence that she had been crying. "He'll come around. We just unloaded a lot on him today, and I'm sure he just wanted to focus on you."

Delta rolled her eyes. "He's focusing on finding his keys right now."

"Hey baby, what are you doing here?" Gemma asked as she and Clay walked over. She caught the evidence that Jax confirmed with a nod before hugging her daughter. "Shit, I'm sorry. I know you wanted it to go well. I'm guessing that's why you showed up _without_ protection."

Delta huffed out a breath. "Not now. I almost got that lecture from Opie." She saw the confusion on her father's face and grinned at him. "You were right, Daddy. Looks like you're going to be a grandpa in nine months, give or take."

Clay's face broke out into the grin that always reminded Delta of a happy ape before he hugged her. "I knew it. The tradition lives on. Pregnant at your own wedding." He frowned after a moment. "I shouldn't be happy about that."

"Clay, when you drove the car up to the house, did you notice a rattling at all in the hood?" Jax asked as he rounded around the car.

Clay held Delta against his side, huddled under his arm. "No, sounded just like an engine should. Why?"

"Well, I heard rattling on my way down here." Delta explained as Jax popped the hood. She walked over with the light from her phone to help him look around. "Do you see anything that would make that noise? None of the caps are loose."

Jax reached in, seeing a small black box that he hadn't noticed before. "Well, this was probably rattling around. It wasn't attached to anything." He held it up in the light and felt his stomach drop realizing what it was. "Shit. This is a tracking device." He met Delta's eyes. "You're lucky you came straight here. If you would've stormed off somewhere else, he would've followed you."

Clay motioned for Gemma to pull Delta back into her arms before looking at the object himself. "Fucker won't leave her alone."

"Could've been Stahl." Jax suggested as well. "We still don't know whether she's with him or with us." He handed the tracker to Clay as he examined the rest of the car. "But, we could use the tracker to our advantage. If Hale thinks you drive off somewhere and follows you-"

"We could trap him." Delta agreed with a nod of her head.

Gemma held Delta against her tighter. "You aren't suggesting we have Delta drive around until Hale decides to come after her."

Jax shook his head. "No, someone else can drive it. Another person hide in the trunk." He glanced at Delta as he rounded around to the back. "Is the trunk big enough for a person to hide back here?"

"Could probably fit two if you wanted to really have some gun power." Delta estimated as she walked around to Jax. He hit the open trunk button on her key fob before it swung up and open. "Holy shit!"

"Jesus Christ." Jax wrapped himself around Delta, shielding her from what was inside. "It's definitely big enough for a body. Stahl's decaying corpse is in here. And, she ain't fresh."

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